Dart is less than delighted to be back aboard ship, but it sure felt good to live like a human being for a few days. He won’t say “ordinary human being” because he feels more fortunate that the average Joe. His train trip was made to feel longer because he had no seat other than his Navy duffelebag. Sitting on that for many hours caused his talcum powder container to burst, getting ground deep into his dress blues.
He’s disgruntled to learn that the Craig is now on restricted water hours which have been deemed a permanent condition. That really burns him up! Under full steam at sea, with a much larger crew, the Haggard rarely had water restrictions. It’s another reason to dislike his new floating home.
A nice bundle of letters awaited him when he returned; three letters from Dot, a catalog from Kent State, a letter from Ohio State and letters from several buddies from Shaw and Case. One fellow who’s still serving in the Pacific says the tale of the Haggard is legend over there. He’d not heard from Dart since word of the Haggard’s run-in with the kamikaze, so he’d feared that Dart was “fertilizing some seaweed.” All his old pals send hearty congratulations on his engagement.
He thanks Dot for the Christmas gifts of paper (which he has now begun sending back to her, a few pages at a time), the scarf (which is stored safely back home to wear in his civilian life), the socks (which he will proudly wear on his next liberty), and the necktie (tucked into his sea locker, waiting to be worn with dungarees during his final few days in the Navy.)
How lonesome he is for Dot! A week ago tonight, they were staying up late on the davenport at his home. He regrets sleeping as much as he did while they were together, but not the time they fell asleep in each other’s arms and awoke together, on the davenport. Such moments make him feel strongly that they must find a way to marry before he’s out of school. There must be a way to make that happen. Also, when they are able to spend more time together, he suggests they try to limit their intimate, private times, lest the innocent activities that now satisfy them will no longer hold the same thrill and they’ll be tempted to go too far. Perhaps they could find benefit in waiting a year before marriage, but to wait too long would be detrimental, he’s sure.
He closes by saying the biggest reason to marry sooner is that he loves her so very, very much!
# # #
Dot begins her cheery letter while babysitting at the Miller’s house. When she arrived, the first thing Chris said was “Where’s Dart?” She’s tickled that the little guy remembers Dart after meeting him once, many months ago. Baby Eric has lost his curls and now looks like the cutest little roughneck she’s ever seen. The boys are being extra rambunctious today, and with her bad cold, she doesn’t feel much like playing along with them. She also mentions that the Millers moved into a bigger house to make room for baby number three, and that the Pecsoks also just welcomed their third. I guess these families represent the first wave of the post-war baby boom!
She was happy to get Dart’s telegram saying he’d arrived back at the ship on time. How she hopes that’s his last train trip as a sailor! (But if he gets a chance at another leave, don’t let a little train trip stop him!)
“After having seen you this past week-end, I feel as though I know you as completely as it is possible to know anyone. Regardless of how much sleep we lost, I think it was good for both of us to have those talks. It was a relief to find out you’re not quite as perfect as I thought. Now maybe when you know me really well it won’t be quite such a shock to you. Going to sleep in your arms Saturday night was the most thrilling thing that’s ever happened to me. Just think, someday we’ll be able to do it without having to keep an ear open for Mr. Koontz’s alarm clock. Oh, happy day!”
Today she got the letter Dart wrote on Christmas Eve. She and her family had a long discussion about moving to Cleveland, but they think since the Peterson family is smaller, they should move to Greenwich so the “kids” can be together always. The biggest advantage is that the Petersons will live closer to Lake Sunapee. She wants him to be sure to tell his folks that they’ll be coming up to the lake next summer with Dot, Dart, and the whole Chamberlain clan.
Tomorrow, Dot has her dental cleaning, and then a big date with some friends to go over to Stamford to see “The Bells of St. Mary’s.” She’s thrilled that her dad is letting her drive the family car for the occasion, after what happened to “Pegasus” the other day. He’s just happy that out of three Chamberlain vehicles, the only one with fire insurance was Pegasus, so all the damage will be fixed for free.
Okay, that last sentence is one of those lovely little treasures that keep popping up in these letters. Who in the 21st century would ever think that a car could be insured specifically against fire? Isn’t that assumed in all auto policies now? Also, it was fixed for free. Did they have no deductibles back in those days? When we learn about history, we learn the dates, places, names that make up the big events. It’s rare that any of us is exposed to these little details of everyday life that are preserved through private letters. That single paragraph gave a teeny glimpse into a piece of historic minutiae that might otherwise be lost forever.
Because of her cold, she promised her mother that she’d get to bed early tonight, and it’s already past midnight. “Thank you for being, Dart, and especially for being all that you are.”
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