19 December, 1943

438^th AAA AW BN

APO 527 % Postmaster, N.Y.

Sunday, Dec 19, 1943 1700

England

Darling Wilma –

This must have been a thrilling day in your lifetime – and I hope – a happy one too. I’ve wanted to write all day – but I spent most of it just thinking about you and home and your folks and us. Believe me, dear, I was with you in spirit and every other type of communication except physical. I hope you had some inner feeling dear that I was with you.

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And now, I suppose, back home for good – or rather until I can take you with me to our own place. Did you move out today or did your plans call for a later removal, dear? And how much time are you taking off before you start some kind of work? No doubt you’ve been writing the answers to these questions before now.

Here – it was a quiet Sunday. The weekly schedule calls for a 7 day week here and things went on just about as usual. I spent most of the morning at the hospital, then an hour or two at the Club, and again back to the hospital. I got here a little while ago, dear, and am going to dress for supper – or rather dinner. Among other things – at our evening meal we are obliged to wear our blouse and pinks. It’s all quite formal, I assure you, darling.

After we eat – there’s a recorded concert at one of the buildings near here – and several of us are going over. I’m going to stop writing now, dear, but I’ll continue later.

2200

Hello darling!

I just got back from the Club. After our supper we played billiards for awhile. I know very little about the game – but it helps pass the time. Then we saw some Russian war films – non-fictional and very vivid. I hadn’t been at the Club before – so late in the evening – but on our way out there was a buffet set-up with sandwiches, dough-nuts and coffee. I tell you darling it’s going to be hard to be a real soldier again. Now I’m in my room once more and getting ready to go to bed.

Today I heard from someone in the battalion that one of the soldiers finally received a letter addressed with APO 515 and not 4916. That means that figuring about 8 days for V mail, he must have been heard from somewhere around the 10th of Dec. I hope only that you heard from me by that time, dear – and not later. I know it must be damned difficult writing letters and getting no answers – but I’m sure you’ll realize sweetheart – that every time you were writing, I was too – and very likely the same things were running through your mind as through mine.

I haven’t done as much visiting of towns since coming to England as I thought I would. I wrote of the places I’ve been to already, I believe. I still have to visit London and I intend visiting Cambridge and Oxford if I get the chance. Right now I see no reason for going traveling at all – it’s so convenient here. The minute you leave an Army station you meet difficulties in getting food, and traveling conditions on the whole are not very good. No one at all, it seems, drives a car; and dear – I mean no one. You just don’t see autos on the road at all.

Well, Sweetheart – it’s getting late, so I think I’ll stop for now. Here’s good luck and wishes for an interesting job and easy waiting for me to come back to you. I’m saving my love, all of it dear, for you – and when I do get back, I’ll be able to tell you in person just how much I do love you, darling.

For now – goodnight, dear and my

Deepest love

Greg

Wilma's Mount Holyoke College diploma is dated the 19th day of December (DIE XIX DECEMBRIS). In addition to marking 1943 (MCMXLIII) years since "man's redemption", (SALUTIS HUMANAE), the diploma marks 168 (CLXVIII) years of the American Republic(REIQUE PUBLICAE AMERICANAE).