Ode to Idah...and My Take on Catsup

Wow, I actually liked Forrest book review on Dal's. Well done, Forrest. I especially like the part about embracing different. Being normal is hard work...and boring. Being yourself is the only way to be!

I also like the words "...mellow class, wistfully, all of us would have." Wise words for a belligerent generation.

And look at that...he used the word "captions" again!

I wrote this little whatever this is last night:

Combat lies with kindness,
Counter hate with love,
Fight your wars with peace,
And you will rise above.

Anyway, it's a lot of fun to stumble upon books like that.

Okay, so I finally had time to read the question about F's military career. First of all, it's funny to note that of all the horrors Forrest must have witnessed, he chose a cute little story about a "catsup" bottle in the "mess" hall to tell us about. I like that. Remembering humorous anecdotes is much more pleasing in the retelling.

When I read this Q&A, certain things "stick out."

First, "memory harkens."

That's a different way of saying "memory listens (or hears)." Hmmm, a little odd phrasing, don't you think?

Harkens comes from a German word, kleu (also interesting), and means "to hear." So, we have Forrest's "hearing" this memory. Maybe his mind takes him back to the sounds of the mess hall--the clinking of silverware and plates being set down on tables, laughter, chatter, and the noises that frequently occupy a school cafeteria.

But there are other curious sound related phrases in this answer.

"His LOOK TOLD me..." The "Mess Sergeant's" LOOK spoke words to Forrest. Maybe that's why Forrest hates "texting machines." They don't have the ability of expression, which is a vital part of communication. It's very hard to communicate expression on a phone, and emoji's are a rather sorry reproduction of the thousands of expressions a human face can convey.

"...slapped in his face by his words..." Words can't physically hurt us...but they can wound, and are sometimes more damaging than people imagine. I remember one time Aidan, when she was about five, came downstairs with a dress that she couldn't quite get on a hanger. My ex MIL was visiting, and she used a forbidden word in our household, and Aidan has never forgotten it. My MIL snapped, "What are you? Stupid?" Then snatched the hanger out of Aidan's hand and put the dress on the hanger herself. I was appalled, as Aidan was clearly "slapped in the face" by her rash and unkind words. The sad thing is, she didn't realize how damaging the word "stupid" is to a child.

"...decided to shut up..." This shows us that Forrest took a minute to think before opening his mouth. Another good lesson. Sometimes being quiet is better than being right.

There are also a few interesting references to sight in this Q&A. I've already mentioned the "look" that told FF he should've eaten the glass-riddled "catsup."

Then there's:

"...rarely saw one (officers)."
"...battle chevrons glared with impunity." Now that's an interesting one. First, I didn't know there were "battle chevrons," because there aren't. Chevrons are the stripes that denote military rank, and six stripes is indeed a Master Sergeant. Five stripes (or "5 bar", or 5 inverted chevrons) in a "V"shape and one chevron (not inverted) at the top.

So, does Forrest imply earning those chevrons and moving up in rank was a battle in itself? To become a "Master" in anything is not usually an easy journey. Maybe that's why Forrest wasn't sure just being a "Major" didn't necessarily "rank" (left "out") a "Master." Being a "Master" sure sounds better, doesn't it?

And interesting that the word "master" originates from a word that means "to acquire complete knowledge." Another early meaning was from the German word, meister, which means "he who is greater."

Chevrons have also been used in architecture, and in ancient rock writing. Looks like the Indian symbol for water, doesn't it?

It's also sorta funny to note that Canadian forces refer to chevrons as "hooks," and the Dutch refer to them as "bananas!" Grab as many as you can to be come a "Master!" Lol.

Chevrons were also widely used in heraldry:

And if you really want to get some cool insight into chevrons, Google "petrasomatoglyph."

More references to sight:

"...focused..."

"...observed..."

"Look Sergeant..." There should be a comma between "look" and "sergeant," but there's not. To me, that could be a hint. LOOK SERGEANT, which tells us where to look.

And he not only uses the attention-drawing missing comma once, but again with "Well Private." Private well, maybe?

Now, let's look at some individual words. The word "sergeant" comes from a word meaning "servant." An alternate spelling was serjeant from Old French, which was used in the sense of men who served the king in matters of law.

It's interesting there are some "courtly" words in this answer, too. "Justifiably," "just," and "impunity." Impunity means without punishment. The phrase F used was  "...chevrons glared with impunity..." The word "glare" sort of implies punishment, but is followed by the word "impunity." Odd...

The word "overwhelmed" is really interesting. The word "whelm" comes from words that mean "to cover" and "to arch."

The word "overwhelm" means to "cover completely" or "completely submerge" and even "to turn upside down" (reminds me of the inverted chevrons which are simple V's).

The word "malplaced" isn't a word, so I think you have to take the word apart to understand what F is talking about. The prefix "mal" can mean "Bad, ill, evil, sin, slander, wrongly, mistake, or lie.

Something I find a little strange is that FF was "overawed," by the MSgt's survival of the Bataan Death March. Why was he OVERawed? It sounds like Forrest thinks this guy's survival wasn't quite as big a deal as he'd once thought.

So, I wondered if I might be able to find this guy. A MSgt in the AF in 1950 who survived the March...

There are a few survivors that caught my attention:

From Wikipedia:

Father Albert Braun was born John William Braun to German immigrants in Los Angeles, California.^[2] Braun was ordained in 1915 and his first assignment was to the Mescalero Apache Reservation in 1916.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Mescalero, New Mexico - 1975

In June 1918, he was permitted by his superiors to enlist as a US Army chaplain at Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas. He soon saw action with the 6th Infantry Division in one of the bloodiest World War I battles fought by American troops, the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Instead of staying in safety at the rear, the unarmed chaplain went "over the top" with the first assault and suffered shrapnel wounds to his jaw. Despite his injuries he remained on the battlefield to minister to the wounded and to give last rites to the dying. For these actions, Braun received the Purple Heart.

Following the war, Braun helped to construct St. Joseph Apache Mission Church, finished in 1939.

So, he was interesting, but wasn't in the Army Air Corps or the Air Force, so probably not him.

This guy, Albert Brown, with his ties to Buffalo Bill, is even more interesting (also from Wikipedia):

Albert Brown was born on October 26, 1905, in North Platte, Nebraska to parents, Albert and Ida Fonda Brown.^[4] His mother was the aunt of actor Henry Fonda.^[4] His father, Albert, was a railroad engineer.^[4] Brown was also the godson of Buffalo Bill.^[2]

Brown was raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa, following the death of his father, who worked as a railroad engineer, in a locomotive engine explosion.^[1] He joined the R.O.T.C.while in high school.^[4] Brown received a bachelor's degree in dentistry from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1927.

Brown recorded the events he witnessed in secret using a small writing tablet and pencil hidden inside his canvas bag's lining.

A few other possible candidates caught my eye, but to save space, I'll let you Google them:

William Dyess

Samuel Grashio

Jesse Monroe Knowles

One other thing: The Bataan Death March was the subject of a documentary called The Forgotten Hell.

Maybe the reason why the survivor's look told Forrest he should eat the glass filled "catsup" was because that was like filet mignon compared to what he'd had to eat in the March. 

Anyway, I wonder if this Q&A was another "Who's Who" in those that influenced Forrest in some way. 

Of course, I recommend Googling "Bataan Death March" for more interesting correlations to this Q&A!

And as far as the whole "catsup" thing, I'm not sure it wasn't a diversion from the real meat. Unless we're talking about sound again. The origin of the word comes from Chinese ke-tsiup, which we didn't really have a sound for in America, and the closest we could come was "catsup" or "ketchup." I don't think he was trying to tell anyone they need to "catch up," unless by "catch up" he means catch up to whatever we're chasing. Or maybe it has to do with cats being up in a tree or something. Lol. 

Have a good day!