was attending East High School in Salt Lake City when I took a class in R.O.T.C. We did exercises with our rifles such as: Present Arms, Left Shoulder, Right Shoulder, At Ease, etc. (Imagine school kids playing with guns at the school during class). I didn't get to finish high school because I was drafted. into the Army and sent to Ft. Riley, Kansas to take thirteen weeks of basic training. We still used guns for training, along with hiking and riding horses. I was to be sent overseas as a Calvary man. 

From Ft. Riley we went by train to California to prepare for shipping to an unknown destination. We spent a day In San Francisco for sight seeing. I remember getting to see the Andrew Sisters preform on stage at a local canteen. I was impressed and have since collected many of their recordings. I still think they were tops as a musical group. Where has all the good music gone now days? 

After we got on the troop transport ship, we were told what our destination was. We were bound for the India/Burma area. On our way to the other side of India, we docked in Australia and watched a show from ship side put on by the USO. We got ship leave so we could go to church that Sunday in Tasmania. When I learned that we were headed for India, I immediately told my self, "Morris, you never dreamed of every leaving the San Luis Valley (Colorado) and here you are going to India. Enjoy every minute of it. Don't spend time complaining about the food, c-rations, or being away from home. Just ENJOY! 

We anchored at Bombay and I'll never forget seeing the twilight sun setting in the west as we came into the harbor. There was a warm rose colored glow which illuminated the smaller boats in the harbor. We got to see a few of the sights there. I remember seeing some of the beautiful homes in the better part of the city

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We soon boarded a troop train headed straight across to the west side of the country.  It took us several days to make the trip. At night when the train stopped to refuel or take on water, you could hear the natives mulling along the side of the train begging for money. "Boxie saub, boxie" We were told not to drink their water or eat any of the fruit that had perforations in the skin. 

From Calcutta, we headed straight north towards the Province of Assam. In Assam, India. We were getting closer and closer to the war zone which would be in Burma. After arriving in Assam, we were to join a Truck convoy headed for Burma. I had a friend by the name of Pvt. O'Brien from Yonkers, New York. He got this bright idea of hopping small airplanes, tnat could take us to our destination without having to travel in this slow, dust ridden truck convoy. I can't imagine how he was able to finagle a ride for us on these planes that was hardly big enough for us and the pilot.  I don't remember looking at the countryside from the air.  I was too frightened to look down.

When we arrived at out destination, we learned that our orders had been changed. We were to go back to Assam by truck convoy. This time we forgot the airplanes and took a truck for our journey back to Assam. 

We were sitting around camp when we heard over the radio that the United States had dropped the Atomic bomb on Japan. We were all excited to think that this would be the end of the War. It was! It had taken months to bring all of those soldiers to India/Burma and it would be some time before we could expect it to be our turn to return State side. 

When it came our turn for us to return home, we went from Assam back to Calcutta and boarded a ship for the return trip home. We went home by way of Singapore. Much of the trip home was on a glass calm sea.  I remember leaning on the rail thinking of the many ways I was going to spend my muster out pay, all $200.00. 

The most beautiful sight was to see the Golden Gate Bridge out in the distance. We were home!  It got even more exciting as we sailed under the bridge and found our dock there in San Francisco. 

We were mustered out of the US Army, given a bus ticket home and we were on our way to our various homes. My parents had moved from Salt Lake City to a nice home in Centerville, Utah. It was nice to be home. I discovered that the hot water for the home was being heated by a "monkey stove" which burned coal. 

I spent my muster out pay to buy my folks a new electric water heater. That's how it goes!