Finally! Last night, after nearly a month of waiting, Dart received the letter he’s been yearning for – Dot’s answer to his request that they announce their engagement during his next leave! “No, Dear, there was never any doubt in my mind as to what your answer would be. Did you doubt that I’d eventually ask about our engagement? I knew you’d say yes. I wanted to get the ball rolling now, rather than wait a couple of months and have a lot of hectic rushing around to do, in the way of rings and things.”
His next paragraph is a stunner! He thinks September would be the month when they can make their announcement! He must write to her parents today, but having never been in this position before, he’s at a loss as to what to say. He misses his Pop’s guiding hand right about now.
How relieved he is that Dot’s mother is in agreement. He hopes that her father is, too. More importantly, he must now work to assure that both her parents stay in agreement with the plan. (There’s precious little threat in that regard.) His parents agree that these two kids have the “makin’s of a very happy life together.” Dart thinks it’s so much nicer when all the parents are on board.
He doesn’t think 19 is too young to become engaged. They still have a little time before they marry to make plans together and to grow, “and still be young enough when we’re married so that we can still have the fun of young people and do the things young people do.”
Her letter has made Dart very happy – “The kind of happiness that makes a guy want to sit down and dream.”
But he pulls himself away to other topics. The shore leave scheduled for today was cancelled because the transport boats are too busy to bother with taxi service to the beach. Instead, a very rare “swimming call” has been issued, allowing the men to swim in the open water on the port side of the ship.
His mother wrote that Burke left for the Navy on June 12, after a fun and hectic few weeks. His best friend lived at their house for the last four weeks of high school and the boys and their “steadies” squeezed in all the fun they could manage. Helen reports that Burke wore a tuxedo to his prom and was just portly enough to look pompous. “Imagine, a ‘portly, pompous kid brother,” exclaims Dart. Actually, both those adjectives continued to describe my Uncle Burke for years to come.
The last page of this letter consists mostly of one of Dart’s humorous sketches. It depicts a very large globe of the Earth with a grinning sailor perched on top. “I guess you know who this is supposed to be, It’s the way I feel, sitting on top of the world.”
