18 May May 18, 1945

letter
from: Pvt George W. Shonkwiler
to: Mrs. Alice Shonkwiler
Compiegne, France
18 May, 45
7:30 P.M. Friday

Dear Alice and Ronnie:

Received a very nice birthday card today plus another long airmail letter with
another enclosed that you had written me last October 23rd and had been
returned for some reason.  I can’t figure out why they returned so many of my
letters.  The address was correct.  Your airmail was mailed May 10th and of
course that is not bad service although it was written May 8th.  Guess you
still forget to mail them once in a while.  The birthday card was very nice.
[I] Thought I had told you that I received both your Christmas cards and the
Easter card about a week or so ago.  They were nice too, even though they did
arrive a little out of season.  No fault of ours though I know.

I finally was able to get a pass to San Quentin for tomorrow and Sunday.  And
if all goes well will spend those two days with Al.  I think I will ride on a
GI truck that I was told was leaving at 8 A.M. tomorrow.  It will seem pretty
good to see someone I know again although I really don’t know him very well.
I guess you know more about him, and Mrs. Evans too, than I know about Al.
Anyhow we will get a chance to see how the other lives and exchange gossip.
Wish I could get a chance to meet Dick too.  Still can’t understand why I’ve
only received the one letter from him.  Surely would like to know where he is
now.

page 2
As for my birthday present, go easy.  There is very little or practically
nothing I want over here now that I can’t get except a discharge or a ticket
home.  If you could send me either one of those then get it on the way at once.
Otherwise, better save your money.  And by all means save your points.  I am
now getting plenty to eat and the food usually is not bad.  In fact I’ve been
eating so much lately that I have been neglecting getting up for breakfast.
The job I have doesn’t call for any exercise, and no exercise means no great
demand for a lot of food.  I don’t believe I’ve gained much weight though.
Still around 148 pounds.  You talk about it being nice if you know when I was
going to get home.  Well it’s sure as hell would from my angle too but I’m
growing more pessimistic daily about my getting home at any early date.  I feel
certain I’m good for at least nine more months here and then the Lord only
knows what will come after that.  The only consolation you can get from this is
that I don’t know anything for sure and your guess is as good as mine.  The
army does very funny things at times.  One thing I know for sure, regardless of
the Red Cross, and everyone else, as long as the army thinks it can use you in
any capacity in any place that’s just where you are likely to be sent regardless
of individual circumstances.  The only sure way would be to have Japan give up
and personally that’s a bit too much to hope for just yet.  Maybe not for a
long time.

page 3
Oh well as all things must, there will be an end to all this someday and then
when we are both old and feeble we’ll be able to be together again.  It’s
really not going to be that bad my dear, but sometimes I get to thinking it
might.  Especially when I think now that it’s been almost a year since I’ve
seen either one of you and a year right when Ronnie should have his Daddy home
most.

It has been very warm here the last two weeks but late this afternoon we had a
pretty hard rain and tonight it’s nice and cool.  Looks like I might have good
weather for my trip tomorrow.  These surroundings here are really quite nice.
We are right on the edge of the forests of Compiegne and even in the edge of

the city here there are many large trees, also [a] lot of flowers.  Especially
roses.  They have the largest rose bushes I have ever seen.  The building I
work in is a large three-story affair.  I work on the second floor and right
outside our window is a large rose bush blooming.  We had all the white roses
we wanted for Mother’s Day and all we had to do to get them was to open the
window and cut them off the bush.  There are plenty of red roses just the same
too.

Well my dears, I have lots to do yet tonite to get ready for my work week-end
so that’s about it for now.  How’s my little Ronnie tonite and my dear little
boy[,] when I get home I’ll take you sled riding, airplane riding, and every
other kind you wait and see.

Love, Daddy