[pitch=12]My father walked across Europe during the Battle of the Bulge during WWII. He was a scout in his infantry troop. We laughed many times over the years about the Army’s thinking and decision-making with regards to assigning roles.

You see, my father had poor vision, only corrected with glasses. He soon discovered that it was not wise to wear his glasses while scouting (though he could not spot the enemy without them). Tragically all the scouts who did their duty wearing their glasses were spotted by the Germans and shot in the head.

God’s angels must have worked overtime with my dad and his troop. He scouted without his glasses and gave the go-ahead to advance. I do not know if his unit had casualties, but his little bunch did not suffer loss.

My father was given a blessing, though at the time I am sure he did not feel this way. He got frostbite on his feet and was laid up for 2 weeks, thus putting his unit at the rear of this momentous and bloody battle.

He claimed that since he walked so much during the war, he would never walk anyplace again. We told him, “Use it or lose it.” He did not use it; he lost his ability to walk. In later life he regretted this. But so what? I understand why he thought this way.[/pitch]