My Dad and Doris Day

Memorial Day has passed, but it is never too late to thank those who have made sacrifices for the greater good. My father is one of them. Rather than tell sad stories of the injuries he sustained in Vietnam, the loss of friends abroad, or the funerals he assisted in at Arlington National Cemetary, I would rather recount a story that conveys the thought that, even during the worst of times, there can be a positive.

My dad entered the United States Marine Corps in the summer of 1967. Newly graduated from high school, he was too young to be shipped to Vietnam right away, so he remained stateside for additional training until he turned 18 in late autumn. During one of his cross-country flights between bases in North Carolina and California, he found himself sitting next to an attractive blonde woman. He kept looking out of the corner of his eye, and, not wanting to bother her, he kept to himself. Finally, the urge became too great: "I hate to bother you, ma'am, but are you Doris Day?" She answered yes, and the seventeen-year-old Marine was in heaven!

From his account, she was incredibly down-to-earth. They talked for the remainder of the flight, and she was very appreciative of his service to the country...something that, at that time, was rarely the case. To this day, I joke around with my dad about his "girlfriend." Is it any wonder I grew up hearing Dad sing this song?