Diary+Entry+1.)+-+B+Chae+Jinwoo+(James)

**Diary Entry #1)**

December 10th, 1937

It's been a while since i wrote a diary, so I'll have to do some explaining. Last Tuesday, I got forced into the 'J&A Pen Pal Club' at school by my algebra teacher. She says she met a Japanese History teacher at a conference held in Japan 2 weeks ago, and after some intense debating on their historical views, they decided to organize the whole cross-cultural Pen Pal thing to 'extend our historical perspective'. Anyway, the kid I got assigned as my partner is a 12 year old boy living in Tokyo named Junichi Oska. At first, I was quite disappointed and discouraged by the fact that the person I had to exchange letters with for the entire year was a mere kid, but soon I realized that he was abnormally mature for his age, being quite an intellectual. Although we've only exchanged letters two times so far, I'm already feeling deeply interested by Junichi's stories of Japan. The descriptions of his daily life and his relationships with his friends are very amusing to listen to due to the fresh cultural differences (being a history geek, I love to learn about other cultures). But the topic that fascinates me the most is always the his description of the ongoing tensions between Japan and China. He sees that the conflict is growing day by day, and that people around him are all getting involved in the war. Well, I guess I 'fascinated' won't be the exact expression. I am interested in the topic, and it seems to be quite serious, yet I fail to put myself into the situation completely. I mean, it's hard to care much on an issue that is happening on the opposite side of the globe. However, the American government seems to be thinking differently. My brother says that the government is taking Japan's actions on China as a challenge to the U.S. and is planning to 'avenge' them. Really? Are such actions really necessary? I see an pointless bloodshed coming soon.

Anyway, I'm off to bed now. I'm thinking of listening to music by a new jazz band named the Glenn Miller Band as I go to sleep. One reason being that it might relieve my stress from the useless concerns I had regarding the Japan/China/U.S. issue, and another being that the band's named after a guy with the same last name as me, which implies that it's pretty damn awesome.

**Diary Entry #2)**

December 20th, 1941

I received a letter from my brother John in Hawai, and it made me put a decent amount of thought in the issue of war.

Ever since the U.S. attacked the Japanese army in response to the Rape of Nanking, Japan and the U.S. have had intense, ongoing conflicts. At first it seemed as if the U.S. was maintaining the higher ground, yet on December 7th an event happened that took away countless lives of Americans and scarred the nation's soul forever.

On the morning of December 7th, the Imperial Japanese 'Navy' had poured a surprise military strike on the U.S. naval base in Hawai. Soldiers were killed, ships and cruisers were sunk, and the base itself had taken a significant amount of damage. John says that his best friend Jack had been sacrificed during the event. And Jack is only one of the 2402 Americans who were killed that day. Crazy, isn't it. Through each word that John used in his letter, I could feel the deep pain and sorrow that he must be feeling due to such losses. I noticed that he tried to hide the details of the gruesome scene, to censor out the cruel reality of war for me. He demanded that I never join the army, and that I don't tell about the details of the story to Mom. I thought that was quite pointless, since she'll probably get to know about it anyway through the news. But the fact of joining the army, I had to put some thought into. To be honest at this point, I didn't see why people would go to fight for such meaningless battles. What would they directly gain from war? Would it really be more worthy than the risk of their own lives? As I mentioned before, I'm a history geek. And I'm also a great literature fan, and a fervent follower of jazz and the Glenn Miller Band. I don't see how the image of war and bloodshed would fit in there. However, John's letter did shake something in my mind, and something pokes my heart whenever I hear news of the incident's casualties.

In case your wondering, I haven't received any letters from Junichi yet ever since my last diary entry.


 * Diary Entry #3) **

April 23rd, 1942

I got a letter from Henry, a man that I got to know through John. He's a friend of John's, and is a U.S. soldier. We sorta contact each occasionally, mostly through letters I exchange with John. Seeing that he lettered me privately, he must have something serious to talk about.

It turns out that John was worried about me wanting to join the army, and he wanted somebody who knew about the tragic reality of war more than he did to convince me into not joining the army. At first, I was feeling quite annoyed by John's over protective behavior. Yet, after I listened to what Henry had to tell me, my life changed forever.

Henry explained about his life in the army, how he had lost his loved ones due to the war. I had heard of the story of Jack's death last year, but the stories that Henry told me were simply shocking and disheartening. The numerous deaths of his friends and family caused by the war were highly realistic and horrifying, definitely more than the censored news of Jack's death. Henry must've intended to scare me off by these stories or discourage me with them, but the effect was the exact opposite.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Diary Entry #4) **

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">September 12th, 1945

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">A couple of days ago I saw a magazine article written by a British Journalist Caroline Tennant. The Journalist was seeking an interview with a person regarding war, and I immediately thought that it was an opportunity for me to confirm my new beliefs to myself.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Why didn't you want to go to war when it started? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">- Back then I was not aware of the true reality of the war, and was receiving censored and shaded information. Now that I know the real danger that is lurking upon our nation, there is no reason for me to no longer lay back like a coward and ignore the numerous deaths of others.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">Why do you wanna go to war now? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">-I had heard descriptions of the war about what is really happening. The lives that were taken by the Japanese soldiers cannot be recovered, and I feel that it is my duty to prevent the same tragedy from repeating itself. Before I was into the war, I was a normal high school boy who was interested in history and literature. Now I set my new goal as allowing so that shameless and proud history can be taught to future generations, not sorrowful, tragic history.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">What did your friend, family, or loved one experience at Pearl Harbor? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">- I did not learn about the news of the attack of Pearl Harbor directly. I was informed of it through letters sent from my brother and his friend who were both present in the. Yet, I was able to understand the severity and solemnity of the issue due to the vivid descriptions of the deaths of soldiers and loved ones.

<span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">What are your overall views of this war and what's happening after it? <span style="font-family: 'Courier New',Courier,monospace;">- I admit that the war is a costly matter, and great sacrifices from both sides will be inevitable.