Camp Washington- Oct. 12, 1945
Dear Aunt Harriett,
Birthday greetings to you are late, this year. With all the excitement of going home, I have neglected to write. My situation at the moment is good. I am expecting to board a boat any time now and should be on my way within three weeks at the latest. It is a cheerful prospect and one that occupies my mind constantly. However, there is a certain amount of anxiety within me, when I think of the many adjustments to be made and problems to be met, when I am again my own boss. This camp is located near Reims which I have visited once and hope to see again before I leave. The cathedral is wonderful. As much as I have disliked being separated from home, there have been minor compensation in form of travel and sight seeing.
I hope that this letter finds you feeling well and your outlook bright. Best wishes for you at the time and lots of love.*** Carl

*** Like many of us, my Father had little opportunity for eloquence. In these vmails, saved by my Great Great Aunt Harriett,

Harriett Risley Foote ca. 1915

we see a dutiful nephew writing to his great aunt on topics he hoped would appeal to her cultural and religious sensibilities. Harriett, once married to an Episcopalian cleric, long widowed and childless, had treated my father as a favored son.
I expect to fill-in the trajectory outlined in these v-mails with memorabelia of more general interest which my father collected during his experiences in Europe 1944-45. JR