On VJ Day 74: Letters between the generations
On the 74th anniversary of VJ Day, Ashley Prime writes for RFHG about his father, Lance Corporal Ashley Prime ā a former prisoner of war in Singapore and Thailand ā whose moving post-war letters have been published open access for all to read.
Lance Corporal Ashley Prime. Courtesy of Ashley Prime
I had of course always known that my father had been a Japanese Prisoner of War. I grew up with that always in our minds in our home, but it was never really seen as a negative. It was just there, and from my childhood, I recall kindly former colleagues of his visiting our home. They were always kind and I never felt any anger in the way they were. At least to me as a small child.Ā
Later in life, I was living in West Germany in my early twenties, and whilst back in London on holiday, Iā¦
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Posted on June 22, 2020, in First-hand Accounts, Uncategorized, WWII and tagged CBI, Father's Day, History, Letters, Military, Military History, VJ Day, WW2, WWII. Bookmark the permalink. 61 Comments.
Pacific Paratrooper 
Amazing post
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Thank you for stopping by.
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Excellent repost again gp, plus another great link to an intriguing story, fortunately my library here is quite adept in getting my requests in stock.
Cheers.
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Thank you for coming by and reading this, Ian!
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ThNk you for posting Greg. Such a great resource.
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I’m just glad you found it interesting, Steve.
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Nicd blog š
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Thank you.
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How fortunate Ashley Prime’s family is to have his letters–and how fortunate we are to have access to them.
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Thank you for reading her post, Liz!!
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A very nice reflection.
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What best-selling books have been made of! Thank you.
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š
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Sounds like his father learned a terrific life lesson from his suffering in the war.
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Many did. I think it was wrong to end the draft. This generation needs some growing-up, discipline and maturing!!
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I don’t read much fiction; I prefer history, essays, journals — and collections of letters. These are wonderful letters, and I’ll be reading more. Thanks so much for bringing them to our attention, GP!
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My pleasure, Linda. I agree, I only read fiction as a break now and then, or a friend’s post on-line.
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Thank you for sharing this, GP! Wow, so powerful and so important! And a wonderful post for Father’s Day! The post and the few letters I read, so far, brought tears to my eyes. š What a wise father who lived what he said/taught.
(((HUGS))) š
PS…I’ve been thinking AGAIN about all of the sacrifices the family of soldiers, and most Americans, made during WW2..going without, rationing, supporting, contributing, caring, etc…and people today are complaining about wearing a mask.
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People today are all about themselves and what will make them look good to others. Today we have people tripping over themselves trying to make sure no thinks they’re racist. Changes need to happen, but it will never be overnight and it can’t be forced by violence. The people running the riots have all the capabilities of being little tyrants themselves.
Sorry I’m ranting out of frustration.
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I understand the frustration. Sometimes a rant is helpful. š
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Thank you.
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You’re welcome. š
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It is very moving! Beautiful post! š
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Thank you.
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Fascinating story about the life of a soldier not written in history books. I read three chapters so far and will come back for the rest. It must be a shock for them to see how the Japanese soldiers behaved. I love the one who defied the Japs and nothing was reported.
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I am so glad you found this interesting, Rose.
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These letters are fascinating, GP, Thank you.
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My pleasure, John.
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š
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Both his parents were very wise, pragmatic people. His father is correct about forgiveness being difficult, anger eating one from the inside out.
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Quite true. I think when we read letters like these, they make problems so small.
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Wonderful first-hand info. Thanks, GP.
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Don’t you just love the letters? They give the individual perspective.
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Wow, GP! What a fantastic site. I would like to think I would be that forgiving but knowing how the Japanese treated their POWs, that would have been quite difficult I think. He must have been quite a man. I also bookmarked the site to read more letters later. Thanks for sharing your find.
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I’m just thrilled you found it interesting, DC. That generation can still teach us so much.
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Indeed.
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An exemplary post
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I thought so. I wish they had left their comments open.
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Thank you for sharing, GP! Will head over to read, and i am sure it will be very heart touching. Michael
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Touching AND wise. I hope you enjoy them, Michael.
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Thanks for sharing – I love the write up about his fatherās capacity to forgive, and that bitterness eats away from the inside. Thatās wisdom. We are graced with their presence (both patriarchs & matriarchs) until they are gone and most of the time take it for granted…
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I’m afraid we do. Not knowing what we have until we lose it. But since they took the time to write these letters (who saves emails these days?) they can still teach us.
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Yes they can and do. I still write physical letters – call me old fashioned but I canāt help it. The only problem is no one writes me back! š
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I think it adds a personal touch that the internet loses. Sorry to hear no one writes back, but don’t change, Beck!!
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This is a very personal, powerful message that could teach us do many lessons today since we are do divided on so many issues. Thanks for sharing it.
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My pleasure, Pat. It’s terrific having more letters from the past. That generation can still teach us.
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Have you noticed how trendy WWII is right now? I don’t know if it was viewed as a simpler, purer time, if it is because we are losing so many of the Greatest Generation, or so many people sense a similarity to the rise of Fascism and Nazism and today’ polarization? Bet you didn’t know you were writing a trendy blog. š
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Not when I started, that’s for sure. What I did notice was more interest in it because the new on-rush of family history research going on due to DNA advances. People realized I was talking about their own ancestors. I’ve had a number of people tell me that after reading some posts here, they were beginning to understand their parents better. How the Great Depression and war molded them since birth.
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This is a wonderful reblog GP. Thanks!
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My pleasure!!
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Great idea for father’s day. I too read some of them and bookmarked the rest for later.
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Thank you very much.
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oh, these are so powerful and moving, thanks for sharing them
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My pleasure, Beth. I’m glad you like them.
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Just read some of the letters, and saved the link. Many thanks, GP.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I’ve been meaning to reblog this for a while, finally decided to do it for Father’s Day. Thanks for reading, Pete.
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Thank you. Isn’t it a great site?!!
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Thank you, Ned.
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