Not sure if I have shared this story on here! My grandpa was a big storyteller and I think his favorite topic was sharing stories from when he was in the service. He was stationed in Belfast, Ireland during WWII. I don't think I ever got the full story, but at some point he met my grandma. The two later wed in England. Then grandma left her entire family to move to Iowa with grandpa. I can't even imagine what it was like for her to move to a different country in a time where it was so much harder to communicate and see your loved ones. She was a brave lady! Eventually, my great grandpa and grandma Smyth and my grandma's sister moved to Iowa.
In 1997, we went on a trip to Europe for three weeks - Grandma and Grandpa spent the entire time in Ireland staying with Grandma's cousins while we toured Europe - then later we met up with them and Grandpa showed us where he was stationed and all around.
I wish I could talk to grandma about that trip now - I wonder what it was like for her to go back home after all those years.
At some point Grandpa and Grandma started going on annual reunion trips and would meet up with everyone Grandpa served with. I guess they would pass this bottle of wine around the group- until there were just two of them, Grandpa and a guy from Monroe, IA. A year or so before grandpa passed away, I guess the two of them drank the bottle.
They have been doing these Flights of Honor, where they take a plane full of Veterans to Washington D.C. - then return that day. Grandpa sure would have loved doing that - and even better, sharing stories all day with other vets.
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We are standing in front of the church where Grandpa proposed to Grandma.
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