Live from Utah Beaxh its EXLRRP!!!

[exlrrp]

Well here I am, about 50 yds from Utah Beach
I took the train out to Caen day before yesterday, rented a car and drove along the Normandy Coast, from Pegasus Bridge west past all the beaches. Ben takng plenty of pictures, some of which I'll be posting when I get back next wek
This has been one of the most moving experiences of my life ( I know I always say that but this time I mean it)
Walked the entire length of Omaha beach yesterday and I think evry Army veteran should come see this. Ive reqd q lot about it, saw movies about it but you just don't realise how huge an undertaking this was untill you seee this. It was certainly THE defining battle of the 20th Century for the US Army. I also visited the British and Ca nadian beaches--sword, Juno, Queen; etc.
Got up this AM and Walked out to Point Du Hoche, the cliffs the Rzangers scaled to knock out the battery (which later turned out to have been moved)
I just came from the Airborne Museum at St Mere Eglise, it id spectacular
But the mosy moving thing I did so far was to go to the American ce,etery overlooking Omaha. You saw it in Saving Private Ryan. It choked me up and I wrote these words down then to exprss my sentiments. I call it :

Fields of Stone

" Lines of crosses in a row,
Hard as rock and cold as snow
And every cross a story tells
of a shortened life and a day of hell
Stories of honor and duty done
And a life too short for every one
Here I stand above their graves
Thingin of the lives they gave
And I feel grateful once again
Protected by these mighty men
Now I can only look with awe
On the battlefield that they saw
And now I'm standing here alone
Surrounded by these fields of Stone
And though my day has just begun
I'm saluting crosses one by one
Snow white crosses in a row
In a Norman field, where the flowers grow."

What a sacrifice. Theres nothing I ever did outside my fa,ily that I am prouder of than being a parattrooper

I been getting lots ofsouvenirs from all these places,if you want one PM me your address '(Dave E. you especially) I got shirts, hats, refr magnets, etc but what I got I would value the most is shells and rocks from Omaha beach.
The price for any of these souvenirs is whatever I send you-- a hat, shirt or whtever, I want the same thing back from your area. send it to the return address on the package

gotta go now

James