A Lucky Christmas
It was a very cold day in December 1950, and I was aboard a troop ship with several hundred Marine replacements off the coast of Korea.
The Chinese had entered the war, and the 1st Marine Division was surrounded at Chosin Reservoir. We were told we were going to join the division. After lectures from the doctors on surviving the elements, we kept our chaplains up all night because we knew our chances of survival were “slim to none.”
That morning, the Marines at Chosin broke through and moved toward the coast. So, our ship turned around and went back to Pusan to regroup.
The supply situation was in such disarray that for weeks all we had to eat was Australian mutton stew and bread. It should have been against the law to feed that swill to starving, dogs. But what the heck. We were alive. We could throw the stew away, eat the bread and thank the Lord for another Christmas, which for many was their last.
-Clyde Cook
Nederland, TX