By Brice J. Hallows
For unto you is born this day…
After enduring months of fighting and day-to-day survival under grueling combat conditions with the 6th Marine Division on Okinawa, the final surrender of Japan that summer of 1945 was a dream I had never dared hope for.
During the campaign I saw many good friends lose their lives in the struggle. There had been too many close calls for me as well — not excluding the time I had my appendix removed by a MASH surgeon, the many times I had heard the zip of bullets whistling past my helmet or the occasion my rifle was struck by a bullet and ripped from my grasp with the force of a sledgehammer.
For me, still just 19 years old, thoughts of home that had been snuffed dim for a time now filled my soul with hope once again. Christmas always afforded me a peaceful feeling in my heart, and I greatly anticipated this one because I was battle-weary and ready for peace of heart and mind. This Christmas would be a time for reflection and healing.
My duties now took me to Tsingtao, China. I was among a select group of Marine guards chosen to assist a ship crew in escorting a thousand Japanese civilians from China back to their homeland of Japan. This was part of the surrender treaty agreements. I boarded with a one-gallon honey tin packed full of Christmas surprises my folks had mailed to me. My thoughts drifted to home as I pondered Christmas so far away from my family.
My heart went out to these Japanese people as I read the sorrow on their faces and their apprehension as they embarked on a new life in a homeland many had never seen. They had established China as their home, raised families and built up businesses.
This, along with my own deep personal feelings concerning the ugliness and tragedies of the war, made me feel much compassion. Passengers shared crude facilities. They had to supply their own food and blankets for the five-day trip. Shelter on the ship's decks was very basic. The weather was poor, and the ship churned, vibrated, and rocked through the choppy Pacific waters.
Late on the eve of Christmas we neared the once large, beautiful city of Kagoshema, Japan, our destination. People peered anxiously from the cold deck into the night to catch a glimpse of their new home and seemed overwhelmed with emotion and sadness. Even under a stormy sky and dim lights you could see signs of the devastation wreaked by Allied bombing that had preceded the surrender.
About midnight, without much to remind us of Christmas, a medical corpsman came by and asked a few of us if we'd like to gather and do something "Christmassy." Out of sheer creativeness, we fashioned a delightful 8-inch-tall Christmas tree constructed from tongue depressors, cotton swab sticks, cotton balls and tape. We used red iodine and green disinfectant to color the festive tree creation. During that hour we shared cherished Christmas memories and tender feelings about home.
As we sang Christmas carols, a knock came at the door. A polite Japanese gentleman stepped in and asked the assistance of the medical corpsman for a young mother who was in labor and threatening delivery. We jumped to help, gathering towels, blankets and supplies to comfort her during this frightening ordeal. With true compassion, our corpsman provided critical assistance during the delivery. Soon a healthy baby boy was born and placed whimpering into his tired mother's arms. We all experienced such a feeling of awe at the miracle of birth and life under those stark and lowly circumstances.
Upon our return to quarters, we resumed our simple observances, closed by reading the Christ child's Nativity from Luke. Later, as we parted for the night, wishing each other a very "Merry Christmas," I looked out into the turbulent night sky and was astounded to see a bright glimmering star, a beam of hope from the heavens. My heart skipped a beat as I pondered the coincidence and strange events of this night. I repeated in my mind, "Peace on earth, good will to men; for unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior which is Christ the Lord.“
That most memorable Christmas journey was completed that evening across the China Sea in Shanghai, China, where we were warmly treated to gifts and a traditional Christmas dinner at the servicemen's USO.
Over the past 64 years and through all the wonderful Christmases I have experienced in my life, that simple miracle aboard ship, halfway around the world, still warms my heart as it conjures up one of the most unforgettable Christmases ever.
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