My mother and father at Valentine Dance, Southwestern College, 1947.

Fri, Feb 14, 1947: be my Valentine

“These sweets for thee, my sweet Ruth Murray.
Though you are always in a hurry,
Please try to find the time
Just to be my Valentine

       “Love,
            “Sid”

--Valentine’s card from my father to my mother, around February 14, 1947.

Sun, Feb 9, 1947: 'going steady now'

“church, Elijah, supper, church, Fellowship – so tired again. We’re ‘going steady now’”

--Entry in my mother’s diary about dating my father, Sunday, February 9, 1947.  Elijah refers to a performance or rehearsal of Felix Mendelssohn’s 1846 oratorio.

Sun, Jan 26, 1947: Daddy on radio

“listened to Daddy on radio – Elijah practice afternoon – supper, church & fellowship – talked about beliefs”

--Entry in my mother’s diary, Sunday, January 26, 1947, about day with my father.  My grandfather, Alvin Murray, was minister at the Methodist Church in Hutchinson, 100 miles northwest of Winfield, and apparently his sermons were broadcast on the radio.

Tue, Jan 21, 1947: 'so glad'

“came back with a rush – basketball – Kappa Rho vs. Delphi – ‘so glad’”

--Entry in my mother’s diary, Tuesday, January 21, 1947, about a date with my father.

Group at work on Southwestern College yearbook, 1946-47, left to right, Weber,my father, my mother, my aunt Barbara, Henry, Beatty, Abel.

Tue, Jan 14, 1947: Tokyo

"ATIS is a big office employing about 1,000 folks including GIs, civilians, and Japanese nationals.  The equipment is not as good as Washington's in that we don't have swivel chairs, fluorescent lights, or the fine reference material that made life so comparatively good....

"The physical surroundings in which we live here in Tokyo are really quite wonderful.  I am in the Continental Hotel which is the old Aji no Moto building remodeled into a hotel for occupation forces of the CAF 1-6.  It is eight stories high, has a fine restaurant in the basement, good lounge and bar on the first, and rooms on the other floors with a room garden and little shrine to fertility on top. (From the number of kids seen running around the streets, the latter is unnecessary)....

"There is no end of stateside amusement here; there are at least six theatres, the Nippon Philharmonic Orchestra which presents concerts every Sunday afternoon, sight-seeing tours, the college courses mentioned before, and trips to other parts of Japan.  In fact, there is so large a community here of Americans that they have called off limits everything which is truly Japanese and force you into this American entertainment which can be better had in Wichita."

--Letter from John Howes, Tokyo, to my father, Winfield, Kans., January 14, 1947. John was a Navy language officer in Japan and a former Navy school classmate of my father.  He was encouraging my father to apply for jobs in Japan. ATIS was the Allied Translator and Interpreter Section.

Sun, Jan 12, 1947: hitch-hiked

"We are taking it for granted that you got to your destination the day you hitch-hiked to Winfield.  However we'd feel just a little bit better, if we could have words to that effect from you...

"School is going along about as usual with some of the larger boys thinking up more mischief all the time and poorer preparation of their lessons.  But I guess I shouldn't worry, it's their life that is being damaged not mine.  Then on the other hand some are doing such surprisingly good work."

--Letter from my grandmother, Bloomington, Kans., to my father, Winfield, Kans., Sunday, January 12, 1947.

Thu, Jan 2, 1947: 'for the fun of it'

“3 meals – game with U. of Mexico – drug – sleepy at game – will keep this on ‘for the fun of it’”

--Entry in my mother’s diary, about a day with my father.  “drug” refers to going to the drugstore.

Thu, Jan 2, 1947: "for the fun of it"

“3 meals – game with U. of Mexico – drug – sleepy at game – will keep this on ‘for the fun of it’”

--Entry in my mother’s diary, about a day with my father, Thursday, January 2, 1947, Southwestern College, Winfield, Kansas.  “drug” refers to going to the drugstore.