Last night, I came across a small diary.
It was the diary kept by Corinn’s grandfather, SFC Robert A. Reiff, as he fought during the Korean War. It’s a hand-printed, day-by-day account of the months he was there. Short sentences summarize most days from August 19 to November 30, 1950.
Here are some entries that tell the tale of war:
16 Sept – Attacked at 0700. Moved all day meeting enemy resistance on every hill. 15 hills I think. Finally bedded down in the rain. No chow.
20 Sept – Made coffee and ate C-Rations. 0900, tanks crossed river. Squad of E Co ambushed on road, tanks and infantry moving forward to knock out resistance. Small hand-to-hand struggle. No casualties for us. No mail today. Had pretty good nites sleep for a change.
29 Sept – Patrol left 0800. Got lost about 4 times. Finally got back after either killing or taking prisoner 75 enemies. Got back at 1600. The 9 of us were put in for decorations.
6 Nov – 0500 hrs. Slept till 0200. No chow but I had some spare C-Rations. Ready to move again. 0900 moved. 1630 roadblock.
Then, on November 7, the printing in the diary changes from neat and tidy to shaky. The entry reads:
7 Nov – Enemy hitting us from 3 sides. Got hit 0920. Crawled down hill to medic. Hit again, leg this time. Got back to div. med.
After being shot, the entries show SFC Reiff was sent home to Illinois from Korea to be with his wife, Betty, and his new baby, Art.
Reading through this diary made me think of the men and women soldiers who are fighting for us right now. They are away from home, in a strange land, being attacked. And I realized that I hadn’t been praying for our soldiers like I should.
It seems news of these current wars and our soldiers has simply been engulfed by the drama surrounding some movie star’s Oscar dress, another sports scandal, or some career-damaging soundbite by a politician.
Please take time today to remember our soldiers in prayer.
If you know a family that has lost a loved one, or a family that is awaiting the return of their soldier, or a family preparing to say goodbye as their soldier leaves, reach out to them with the love of Christ.
Originally posted on March 5, 2013