On December 7, 1941, I was playing outside, when my father rushed from the house and carried me in to hear the news of the boming of Pearl Harbor. Despite the fact that he did not have to go, he volunteered to fight and went into the Marine Corps as a first lieutenant.

Life was forever changed. I know that was true for many children, but one rarely hears stories about the effect on them. Because I had a mother who wasn't prepared to raise my sister and me alone, much less be without the love of her life, and because Daddy was the one who loved me, I felt deserted, frightened, unloved and scared. I still feel that way some of the time.

I have long considered myself a casualty of the war.