Sands of Iwo Jima
As I learn more about World War ll, and particularly about the War in the Pacific, I become more interested in anything tangible from the battles that were fought there. In fact, that whole period is becoming more real to me – although I find it impossible to put myself in the place of the 19 and 20 year olds who a year before being thrust into battle were going to highschool and tending the family hardware store…
So about a week ago, Dick Updaw, my film subject for Captain, showed up at my door and handed me an object wrapped in tissue paper. I opened it and beheld a vial of blackish, gritty sand which Dick informed me was volcanic ash from the beaches of Iwo Jima. Dick brought back a quantity of this sand when he made his journey there to learn more about the life and death of Cpl. Robert F. Hodes. I now have the jar on my desk where I do my video editing for Captain…
Wow. What a great tangible peace of history. Imagine the meaning of that sand to those who fought there. Thanks for sharing, Dave.