Grit to Live Again (eBook)

Paul Flaherty (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
78 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-8806-2 (ISBN)

Infos

'Grit to Live Again' follows a Korean War POW who was imprisoned for nearly three years. Discover how he overcame his trials in war, marriage, and his return home in this moving biography.

Paul Flaherty is a person that the veteran confided his experiences with and promised to share these experiences and memoirs posthumously at the veteran's request

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"e;Grit to Live Again"e; shares the experiences of an American soldier and prisoner of war held captive by the Peoples Republic of China during the Korean War. He was held prisoner for approximately 32 months, from early 1951 until the war ended in September of 1953. This book includes the soldier's personal memoirs from that imprisonment, which he wrote 14 years later. When he shared his memoirs with the author 37 years later, he attached a request that they be published after his death. The author has also presented the records from this POW's interrogation records (previously sealed by the US military), the challenges he and his wife had to deal with as he recovered from the abuse in the PRC's POW Camps, and the mistrust expressed by the US upon his repatriation.

Textauszug

Chapter 3.1

Captivity And The First March

“You have been liberated by the people’s liberation battalion”

These were the first unforgettable words that I heard from the Chinese Reds.

What was an ironic statement I thought, for it was February 12th 1951 the birthday of Abraham Lincoln the great liberator. As we were being liberated, the Chinese people’s volunteers were searching us for rings watches cigarettes matches and anything else of value. The 11 of us Americans, including four officers and seven enlisted men, had just become prisoners of the Chinese communists during the Korean War. Also there were three South Korean soldiers with this small group of Americans

Suddenly American aircraft appeared and circled overhead. The Chinese hustled us into a small Korean house. The sun was shining bright and brighter from the distance we could hear the sounds of Americans and the rumble of American artillery. Possibly it turns out our battalion was firing at the enemy. Also, maybe, probably or hopefully the American forces would soon attack and liberate us from the enemy. The situation was so confusing, new and different. A loud crash of bombs was heard nearby and the sound of aircraft strafing in the immediate vicinity added to the confusion. Looking to help our wounded we demanded a medic from the Chinese. Then I demanded to see the communist unit commander. Did the Chinese really consider or understand what I had requested? Probably not they just walked away from me.

The bombing and strafing continued for most of the morning. We remained in our very small room in the Korean hut. We were very crowded in this room for the first time but little did I realize that over the next few years we would become accustomed to the close cramped quarters of huts trenches and caves. Before noon, the Chinese in no uncertain terms required us to depart our quarters. I wondered where we were going? I wondered if the Chinese Reds would kill us now. I had heard many stories of their cruelty and wanton killings. Chinese soldiers directed us out of the Hut across a frozen snow covered rice paddy and up the slope of a nearby hill. The hill was thickly covered with pine trees. We were required to sit huddled together relatively safe from the bombings and the praying eyes of the American aircraft. Under the cover of the trees, American planes continue to circle overhead with their bombing and strafing in the distance we could hear the pounding of the American artillery.

It was a long day but fortunately finally it ended. The Chinese guards motioned with their rifles that we were to go down the hill. We returned to our small room from which we had departed that morning. The bombing had ended for that day we were seated on the dirt floor and leaning against the wall. Joining lean to shelter I could hear a horse snorting - I was soon to learn that the Chinese Reds were experts at camouflage. The Chinese would hide the horses mules, oxen carts and trucks among thick pine trees in force around the Korean huts here or in caves dug into the cliffs along the supply routes.

The English speaking Chinese soldier returned. Again, I demanded medical attention for our wounded. He said in broken English that he would send for medical assistance. I noticed that all the Chinese Communist soldiers all looked the same to me. I thought they looked quite young and I imagine they must be the peasants not long departed from their rice paddies. I noticed that none of them wore insignias of rank of any type.

After waiting patiently a Chinese medic strangely enough did appear at the door. He looked like the other Chinese soldiers I had seen except that he carried a small metal box with a white circle and Red Cross plaque on both sides. We immediately recognized the box as a container for 30 caliber machine gun ammunition. This was an American made ammunition box which was being used as a container for medical supplies. The medic opened his first aid box and inside the container I saw only minimal first aid equipment. The Chinese had placed a small amount of white powder on the grenade and gunshot wounded and tied a small bandage over the wound I had. They made no attempt to clean the area around the wounds before applying the powder/bandages. I had already used my first aid kit and tried to bandage some of our guys wounds - I received no medical attention and the shrapnel from the hand grenade remained in my hand. For three of us in better shape the medic made no attempt to remove or treat our poor efforts we made previously on our own. The medic quickly finished and departed.

No further medical assistance was forthcoming until months later when the peace talks began.

Next, I demanded that we be allowed to speak to the unit commander in order to see about releasing the badly wounded. One of the South Korean soldiers captured with me tried to help and began to talk in Chinese or Korean to the unit commander. After much discussion sign language and character scrubbing, the Korean announced that the Chinese soldiers said their unit commander had been killed that day by the bombing and strafing from the American aircraft. I thought at the time how strange it was that the Chinese soldier was grinning and he seemed to think it amusing while telling us about how his Commander got killed.

The Chinese red soldiers departed. We were aware that a guard was posted outside our room and it was night time by then. Seriously wounded were moaning from pain and I was alone with my thoughts. I began to think about how I had gotten into such a situation. Never in my wildest dreams had I ever imagined that I would be a prisoner of war. The events of my entire life began to rapidly pass through my mind. However, I was not sorry for myself and I felt No Fear. I was a young second Lieutenant healthy except for a grenade wound in my left hand and left arm and actually looking forward to the adventures that would undoubtedly come forward come next. I had no doubt that eventually I would return to American hands and then I went to sleep.

As daylight began to appear I gazed about the small room - we were cold and hungry ang provided no food or means to stay warm. We had only a few cigarettes and even fewer matches left with us which the Chinese had not stolen from us during their searches. We stayed in the room all that day. We would light only one cigarette and pass it around as each person was allowed only two puffs or drags on the cigarette. The realism of what had happened began to become more apparent to us.

We found a sack full of ground soybean meal on the wall and the adjoining area around the room. The sack obviously belonged to the driver of the horse.

We were by this time very hungry and now and munched on the dry finely ground brown soybean meal. It was hard to get enough saliva to be able to swallow the dry stuff. Finally, the day ended and we fell into a deep mostly silent sleep and but moody. The wounded were hurting from the throbbing pains of the wounds.

The entire group of field artillery forward observers were under the command of a captain who was the highest ranking officer. The captain had been hit in the large muscle on the top of his left shoulder by an automatic weapon. He had a gaping V shaped wound that was throbbing and caused intense pain to him with any movement of his body. Upon receiving the wound, he quickly announced and surrendered our small band of now prisoners. I was shocked by the announcement because I never thought that was possible! I listened to him moan and realized that this was the man who had surrendered us. Listening to him cry and thinking he put us in this mess – were my thoughts thinking back like a Monday morning football quarterback. I realized that he could have prevented us from being captured. However, I realized that if I had been in the in his position, I might have made the same decision so I felt pity for the captain. I then noticed that this Sergeant who works for him was most attentive and loyal to him. The Sergeant sat in an awkward position holding the captain’s wounded shoulder and in as comfortable a position as possible. The captain seemed to expect such care.

I then noticed a rather young red faced red haired overly plump private first class. This young soldier, a Jeep driver in one of the forward observer sections, had been wounded in the neck. A piece of shrapnel from a Chinese hand grenade had punctured a vein in his neck. The blood had streamed profusely from the wound. On seeing the blood he began to cry, scream and yell. I had bandaged his wounds with the first aid kit. I noticed that he had now wrapped additional pieces of cloth around his neck he looked most forlorn.

The young Sergeant who was my assistant observer sat quietly with his thoughts. He had only recently returned to the unit from a rest and recuperation leave in Japan. Upon returning he had requested an assignment to a new section in order to be in a promotable status. He was told to remain with my section until a replacement was determined. Over the past few months we had worked together daily. He knew his job well and had always conducted himself properly. I admired the young sergeant. Night came and I fell asleep.

I was awakened by the talking. Evidently a Chinese soldier had opened the door and shoved something into the room. As it was dark in the room, we had to feel our way as we crawled across the floor. I felt a box, placed of my hand in it and felt something hot. We finally realized it was cooked rice. We rolled up the rice balls, for we had no eating utensils. The Chinese...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 10.1.2025
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Biografien / Erfahrungsberichte
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3509-8806-2 / 9798350988062