Amnesia

Gillian,
 
I think I’ve finally parted ways with my homesickness. I’m wrapping up a one week leave and I’ve finally managed to relax. Michael Collins turned out to be rather enjoyable company (in more ways than one) as well. I  have something funny to share with you, though.
 
Remember that time you got to go to Disney in Paris and I was home with the chickenpox? Aside from a Winne the Pooh doll that I secretly loved and openly hated,  I was so extremely jealous that while you were dancing to the music of the Main Street parade, I got to read about it on a stupid postcard. Nothing would ever fix the gaping hole I felt as an eight year old!  I’m not one to hold a grudge…but if you’ll notice, I’ve enclosed a rather festive postcard from the moon that I found in a sundries store. A quick banter with the clerk revealed that the postcards were originally designed for the tourism industry that never really took off  what with the ongoing war. Instead, the biggest buyers are military personnel desperate to send any images of their lives back home since digital cams are censored. 
 
If you’ll notice the upper right picture; that’s the AeroG.  They’re a set of bamboo, nylon, and beryllium wings that you strap onto your back and arms. You can leap off of a man-made aerie in a gymnasmium that was made from on old water storage tank. The floor has different vents in it that blow warm air directly up at random times, allowing you to glide, dive, and slowly climb once you get the hang of it. It was amazing, Gillian. Never in my life have I felt so free as when I was swooping back and forth with Michael.  I got to fly just like your precious Peter Pan…without the fairy dust.
 
The bottom picture is Earthrise, as taken from the top of the New Tokyo dome. There is a wonderful restaurant there that serves cuisine from all across the globe. While lost in conversation with Michael, and stuffing my face with the best food I’ve had since childhood, I can look out and watch over you with serenity, peace, and more importantly–hope. While it’s been said the dregs of the Earth come to fight for the survival of the race, I’ve found some great men and women that I am proud to call brothers and sisters. 
 
When the party’s over and I am finally called back to duty in a day or so, I will go knowing that I’m fighting for something worthwhile. And while I thought I had an excuse to jump ship and fly hundreds of thousands of miles away from everything I’ve ever known and loved, I’ve ironically come full circle.  I’m fighting for you. I’m fighting for Dad and Mum. I’m even fighting for those jerkoffs at the pubs. The reasons why I came here don’t matter anymore. The bottom line is that I’m doing something worthwhile that makes a difference in people’s lives. Perhaps I intended it to be a penance for all the pain I’ve caused, but it has changed into something more.
 
Enjoy the postcard. The weather’s beautiful.
 
Shannon

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