Lt. Darrell Lamb Now Somewhere in Sicily

Mr. and Mrs. Ray Lamb have just received a most interesting letter from their son, Lt. Darrell Lamb of the Army Air Corps, in which he states that they can now throw their maps of Africa away and start concentrating on Sicily, where he is stationed.

Lt. Lamb wrote in another recent letter that he was receiving his Beacon O. K. and that one of the papers printed a letter that he had written home.

Darrell’s friends will be happy to read the following letter written on July 16.

Dear Mom and Dad:

No doubt you are very misled with the news today. Don’t know just what it all means or what the outcome of it might be, but it does look promising. I, for one, would be very glad to see it all end and right now would hardly be soon enough. I know how closely you followed the war news when I was still in the states and there is no doubt in my mind that you nearly wore out any African maps you might have had. You can throw those maps away and sort of concentrate on Sicily now for that is where I am now. Just because you know I am here don’t let it cause you any undue worry. You have probably always thought or pictured it about twice as bad as I did before coming over here. I myself had pictured it as two or three times worse than it really is, so you see it is hardly one third as bad as you would imagine. I’ll get along okay as I always have before.

I never got in on that mixup in Africa and I think I need say nothing about what I am doing now. You know that I’m not here on just a sight seeing tour.

I expect I shall have a lot of interesting things to tell you when I get back home. At least I hope it will be interesting to you for I’m afraid I’ll know nothing more to talk about but the things I’ve seen and done over here. One of the qualities we Americans have is the ability to adjust ourselves to most any situation so maybe we will get along alright back there, where we have to eat those nasty old steaks and ice cream and coke and things like that. Right now my ambition is to hand a can of “C” rations to someone that is griping about the gas rationing.

Right now four of we boys are “jungling up”. Every night before it gets dark, for black-outs won’t permit a fire later, we heat up some of the find soluble coffee. It is pretty good when you have nothing better. Over our coffee we discuss the war and its possibilities and all the things we want to do most when we get back. Right now it seems eating is way ahead on that deal. Eats like our mother used to fix for us.

Must go and get my share of the coffee now. Hoping this finds you well and happy. Have been receiving your letters in fine shape.

Love to all,
Darrell.

Source: Spirit Lake Beacon, Spirit Lake, Iowa, Thursday, August 12, 1943, Page 1 [Dickinson County]