Saturday Noon, February 22, 1943 p.m.

Dearest Mom,

Sorry I have not written to you more often, but bear with this in mind every possible spare minute that I have, I spend it writing to someone on studying the drill manual on General Orders or something. I write to you just as much as I can. Mother, they keep us on the go from dawn until dark, every day. That is no joke, it is the truth.

The weather down here is fine again. It was rough for a few days. It got down to 36˚ and you can imagine how that hurt us, we were all used to hot weather and we all have summer clothes. It was worst in the mornings when we get out and take exercises. We start at dawn and exercise until 9:30. Dawn down here is at 7:00 A.M. They really put is through. We go out every morning no matter how cold it is.

I don’t mind it though, it makes me feel good but real tired.

I am going to try and start at the beginning and go all the way through and tell you everything. I am going to write you a small volume….

Mother, my cold is getting better, regular eating and sleep and exercise is finally doing the trick I guess. I really had a bad one for awhile. I did not feel like moving hardly, and we have to go on the run all the time. I had to just make myself go some mornings, it makes one feel like a man though to go when you would lay in bed normally.

Manys the time since I have been down here, I have thought that I could not hold out any longer, and I would just hold on and come out none the worse for the incident. I always remember this line when I want to quit. It was in a poem by Rudyard Kipling Here it is, “and so hold on, when there is nothing left within you except the will that says hold on!” That is pretty good advice to follow I think.

Glad you liked the handkerchief, I wanted to send you something and I could not think of anything to send and I never have any time hardly to get anything like I would like to.

Mother, I have no further grief about the girls not writing to me. “Bee”, Bettie and Frances have all written to me so don’t be mad at them any more. They were just slow about getting started. “Bee” wrote me two very sweet letters about how much she missed me and how it just didn’t seem right when she looked up and I wasn’t there. Made me feel sorta funny inside.

Frances wrote me three letters last week and I got one from Bettie Bailey last week too. They all came through at last. If they expect me to answer every one of their letters they may as well quit writing because I just simply do not have time to write everyone I would like too.

Mother, about you coming down to Miami. Well, if you want to come just for the trip, well and good. You more than just probably won’t get to see me, I will be moving out very soon, we have already been instructed not to send out any more laundry so it looks like it won’t be long now. I do not have the slightest idea where we will go or when for that matter but we are going soon, that I am pretty sure. I will let you know just as soon as I know myself when I am leaving and where I am going. There is the situation so you can judge what would be best for you to do.

Well Mom, it’s time for the lights to go out tonight (Saturday) and I am in charge of K.P. detail tomorrow, that is Kitchen Detail. I have to get up at 3:00 A.M. I take them over to the kitchen and then I can go back to bed. Bob has to work from 4:00 A.M. to 7 P.M. He is working in another boys place. Tomorrow afternoon I have to drill the boys who are being punished for dirty rooms, bad drilling, and etc. That is Sunday afternoon, I have to drill them from 1 P.M. to 5 P.M.

Sunday Afternoon

Here it is Sunday and I had to get up at 2:45 A.M. I was Sergeant in charge of Kitchen detail. I had to get the boys up to be in the Kitchen today. I did not have to work myself I just had to go around and get them all up. Right this minute I am on detail. I am in charge of Punishment Tours. The boys who have been late for formation or something else wrong have to drill for an hour to work it off.

I am either very unlucky or the Commanding officer thinks I am good, I don’t know which. I like to think it’s the latter. I am in my shorts laying on the beach getting a good tan. I have just drilled a group of about 10. I have to stay out here until 5 P.M. I’ve been out since 1:00 and it is three now. I rather enjoy a detail like this.

While I am thinking about it, I got your letter with my tax notice in it. Thanks.

Mother, you have probably gotten that manual by now. I took it over to Uncle Ben’s house and I think Granny was going to bring it home. I got uncle Ben to send that suit to the fellow so he has probably gotten it already. I hope it did not get lost or anything.

Mother, I got the letter with Ralph’s address in it but I have not had time to write to him. I am always doing something extra. Looks like I get picked for everything.

Mom, speaking of being cold down here. It was plenty cold last week for a few days but it is just as hot as summer again. We really enjoy this hot weather. It seems funny, us out here in bathing suits and you all wearing overcoats and such. Some fun.

I don’t think it will be lasting very much longer though. Some of the Cadets have already been issued their winter uniforms and we are supposed to gets ours tomorrow, so I don’t think it will be very long before we are moving out.

New cadets are already coming in. We had a hundred or more sleeping in the lobby of our hotel last night. I felt sorry for those poor lads, they are mostly Northern boys though so it doesn’t matter much about them. Yankees you know.

Mother, I have not gotten any letter from pop, sorry, I made a mistake, I did get one. Thank him for me. I cannot remember from one day to another I am always in such a hurry.

Thank Ben for his too, I will write the, just as soon as I can. I appreciate their letters a lot.

Mother, as for our pay, I am only getting 50 dollars per month now, but when ever I get to be a cadet I will get 75.00. I got a $10.00 advance allotment the other day so I have not had to cash but one of my checks. A $10.00 one.

Bob and I went down the beach last night and saw three cadets. We happened to know one of them. We went to school with him. He is out of Miami University learning to be a navigator. He looked good with his wings on his cap. He took Physics from Mr. Cox when I did so I knew him pretty well.

Mom, I seem to have pretty nearly covered everything for this time so I’ll be closing.

Write to me often as you can,

All my love,

Your son,

Roy