A War in Black and White

Prologue

What to see in a world full of colour? To see the sweet smelling roses off the back porch, the sun cascading a warm yellow glow on Earth as it peaks in the bright sky at noon. Perhaps, even the cracks in the hardwood floor or the shimmering grass upon the yard.

But everything is dull. Fallen upon my eyes is a thick, hazy grey hue. Never moving, never changing, remaining constant through all of life.

The world was finally brought down to my level when the paper came on the morning of Monday, December 8, 1941. The Mason City Globe Gazette had been distributed throughout North Iowa, as it was routine for the beginning of each week.

The country stopped together for a moment upon reading the headline. Those black, ink-filled letters stuck out on the white paper like a black bird, flying through a clear-blue sky.

U.S DECLARES WAR

I remember clearly my mother breaking down into tears, her constant composure lost in mere seconds. My father did little to comfort her and retired to his office where he was a nonsense of chatter on the phone. My brothers followed his lead and took to the street, looking for sign-up spots of where they could enlist.

I, however, became a fit of unruly anger. I knew no matter how hard I pleaded that I would not be allowed to join the forces, for I was a weak spot in ones army, and as the quote is foretold, "You are only as strong as your weakest link".