The various assignments given the 84th here in North Carolina, have been completed, we sit around in bivouac (in some obscure pine forest), and wait for the next round of maneuvers. These maneuvers are as realistic as the army can make them, and, to my mind, they have succeeded admirably. It is as close to the actual experience on the battlefield as you can get with the exception of using "dummy ammunition." These so-called blanks still explode ferociously, are dangerous, and can scare the hell out of you if they catch you unexpectedly. They include ordinary .30 calibre bullets, artillery shells, mortars, .50 calibre machine gun bullets, all small arms fire, and land mines which contain no shrapnel, but still have an impact when they are triggered. The weather, as I have noted before echoes the character of the war games, adding to the problems already too numerous to mention. The rain, heavy at times, seldom relents, innundating the battleground, causing all sorts of logistical imposibilities. Add the penetrating cold to this and you get a picture of the situation, one that always gets worse, never better. only more confused, compounding our misery. I can't remember when I have been warm or dry; you cannot change clothing; you move in a quagmire, eat in a quagmire, and sleep in a quagmire. Last week, when we were engaged in a flanking action with the infantry, against the Red Army, we suffered real casualties, several men injured, two severely, who were carried back to Fort Bragg in an ambulance. Rumor has it that the next assignment for the 84th will be worse, involving half-tracks, tanks, and eight-wheeled supply vehicles, in some sort of assault. The enemy, the Red Army, wear red bands on their right arms, and we wear blue bands, so there is a clear indication of which side you are on. From our present position, we can see the "Reds," as we call them, moving around on one of the hills to the north of us. They look like ants scurrying about, as they prepare, I assume, to defeat the Blue Army attack. During the temporary "break," I try to catch up on my writing which has been neglected during these maneuvers which are a night and day operation, which takes all of the time.It is good to begin this exchange with you, to think of other things, not related to these damn war games. As I sit, my back against a charred stump, typical in this area, with my writing materials in my lap, I think of home, and dream, if you'll forgive me, of all those amenities that mean so much. Just to think about a release from this nightmare affords me the greatest pleasure, and to visualize a life where I am doing the things I want to do, adds another big plus. The main purpose, as we have discussed many times, is to hold things together until that time arrives. I realize there are a lot of ifs and buts, but frankly, I don't want to think about them, concentrating rather on us, what we should do, what we can do to help each other get through this phase. Talking about a return to civilian life, I heard from "Smitty," the Company clerk, that all men in our unit, who are 28 years old, or older, would get their release from the army. This means that Arnold, our old friend, would be discharged, although I believe he is eligible anyway, because he is a one year draftee. In any case, he is sure to be home again on Long Island where you can look him up and hear what he has to say about his experience. I wish him well; he has been a good friend through the years, one of those rare individuals with real character. Believe me, they are hard to find these days. It just occured to me as I wrote about our friend getting out of this mess, that I have over two years to go on my enlistment; but look, I don't question the wisdom of my doing it; it seemed right at the time, and it seems right now as I think about it. As you well know, I am convinced war is inevitable, that it is in the cards, that there is nothing under the sun to prevent its happening. That was my logic in enlisting; I have no regrets, although this does not imply I am enjoying the experience. The main thing, as I see it, is to live with these inevitabilities we cannot avoid, plan for our life together, and pray that we can have our wishes materialize. To me, this is far more critical than any other problem, but I realize sadly that it all hangs on whether or not we go to war, and whether, if we do, that we can survive the conflict. Well, I see formation has been called, men are cursing around me here, getting out from under their blankets, hastily dressing, wondering what is up, because formations are not usually called on Sundays. I hope it is just an announcement about some problem that has arisen, and not the beginning of phase two of these maneuvers which the command said would commence in mid-week at the earliest. However, you never know about these things in the army; usually you expect the worst, and that's the way it generally happens .... Please give my best wishes to those back home, both your family and mine, and tell Louis that if he could find a compact little 35 MM camera I could carry around with me, not too expensive, I would be grateful to him for his assistance. And love, I want to conclude with this thought about your patience during this particular period of our relationship. You must get TIRED of reading my complaints, which go on letter after letter, spelling out the problems I face with great detail, never even mentioning YOUR position, its difficulties, that, in its way, may possibly be more trying than what I am compelled to face. I understand being home alone, the ordeal, especially, as it now goes on, with our income practically nonexistent, is not an easy one. What is that saying we hear repeated time and again these days? "Those who WAIT, also SERVE," or something like that. Anyway, the meaning IS clear; this whole experience is a bad dream we are sharing: we are in it together for good or bad, right to the end, and, I want you to know that I fully comprehend the position you are in, and, although I don't talk about it, please feel my sympathies, my determination to help in any way I can....