To: 1st Lt. Edward L. Martin Jr.
FR: Mrs, E.L. Martin Sr.
June 26th, 1943
Dear Ed and Evelyn:
The three V-mail letters came a
few days ago and needless to say I was very glad to hear from you and so
soon after your marriage, too. I didn't think you would be down out
of the clouds as yet. I think it is just swell that Evelyn will be
able to be with you part of the time anyway. It is too bad you could
not get a couple of furnished rooms and do lignt house-keeping, but maybe
that isn't done over there. Well, you will have a long time to do
that after you get back to the U.S. I sometimes sit and ponder just
how long it will be until you and Evelyn and George will be home with us
again. It is a little difficult to imagine our family all being together
again, all sitting down to the table together once more and laughing and
talking as in days gone by. That's going to be a great day in the
morning when that comes to pass. And there will be a new face at
the table, one that we will all be glad to have with us. There will
be a new face for you who have been away, too, little Joe will be
here to welcome his two uncles and aunt home. It's going to be grand
to get together again. So lets all pray very hard that the time will
not be far distant.
Love to both of you and regards to the Humphreys.
Mom
Electronics
Training Group U S Army
APO 640 Postmaster,
New York City
New York
1032 Wakefield
Avenue - Zone 6
St. Paul, Minnesota
U S A
We are enjoying some real summer
weather now after a very cold spring. Our flowers are blooming profusely
and the roses are out in great abundance. It keeps Gerry busy picking
them. I wrote George about them and wish he were here to enjoy them
with us. I put in ten new rose bushes this year so we should have
oodles of them next year. My beets and carrots are coming ok and
the tomatoes and peppers are doing fine. The mosquitoes are so big
and numerous it's very hard to work in the garden without being eaten up
by them. I smeared myself with citranella a couple of times but one
would have to take a bath in it to keep them off everywhere they light.
We have no flies this summer, but tiny gnats pester one so while reading
by a floor lamp that I give up and go to bed and let the darn things get
along without me. Bugs of all descriptions are plentiful because
of all the rain we have had. Gerry has an awful time trying to read
evenings. Every once in a while I see her jump and one would think
an elephant had walked in when in fact it may only have been a small moth.
One evening she was reading in the dining room for a change and she got
excited and called me to come and see something on the screen on the window.
I thought it might be a bat, but it was the biggest butterfly I ever saw
in my life. The body was two inches long and about half an inch wide.
It's wings were enormous.
Rosemary has spent the week in Dakota, she
being on her vacation this week. Pop went west Wednesday morning
and will not be back 'til Monday or Tuesday, so GeeGee and I are enjoying
ourselves and our new found freedom. We eat when we get hungry (which
is most of the time) and we go to bed when we please and get up when we
feel like it. It is wonderful life for this hot weather. Thursday
we went to the Orpheum to see "Cabin in the Sky" a very fine picture with
a 100% negro cast. Rochester was the leading man and Ethel Waters
was leading lady. The music was excellent as you may imagine and
all in all it was a pleasant change from all the war pictures that have
been forced upon us lately. The story was good, too.
Art called a while ago to ask me and my pal
out for dinner tomorrow and that didn't make us mad I can tell you.
Art was taking care of little Joe and Cathy and Mary were at the store.
Art says Joe is getting spoiled already. If he is crying and he picks
him up Joe turns off the sob stuff at once. He is a very nice baby
and everyone says he looks like bug. I wrote Bug three V mails and
told him to let you read them so you will get all the news of Joe and his
christening in those letters. Am sending a lot of newspapers to the
Humphreys so you can get them from them. Will have to close now.
Will write more later.