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| Bill Lyford during his WWII service. |
With the 75th anniversary of D-Day here, I recently had the
opportunity to sit down with U.S. Army and WWII veteran Bill Lyford.
Out of high school, he was drafted, went through basic
training at Fort McClellan in Alabama, left the States on the Empress of
Scotland, landed in Casablanca, and found himself in Salerno for amphibious
training.
He told me that he had fought in the battle of Anzio,
discussed foxholes and K-Rations and talked a bit about being on the front
lines of combat for 2 ½ years. Lyford was succinct, but he was thorough.
He handed me some stories that he had written several years
prior about his time overseas, so when I got home, I read through them and also
did some research on Anzio. I had been looking for a D-Day connection locally
for the 75th anniversary. As these opportunities are becoming so
sparse, I felt incredibly blessed to be able to hear his story.
So I did some research, and when I spoke with him next – on the
phone, I told him that I felt he might have underrepresented the importance of
his time in Italy. He told me that he had fought for nearly five months in
Anzio, but what he failed to mention was that this Battle of Anzio engaged two
German corps that were headed for Normandy. This assisted the
Allied Forces in the successful Invasion that would come two days after Lyford's 45th Infantry Division of the Fifth Army took Rome.
As I re-read his memoirs, and pieced together the stories he
told as well as historical information, I became largely impressed by the
humility of this nearly 95-year-old.
Interview aside, we talked about life. He talked about the
woman he called, “my girl,” and their 69 years of marriage. I listened to their
love story and the beautiful history they shared together.
He also gave me some pretty amazing life lessons.
Lyford explained that life has seasons, and that you must be
able to close one season in order to open a new one. He talked about boating – specifically
sailing in Mackinac. When that season was over, he moved on to something else.
He reassured me – probably unknowingly – that this season of my life – this crazy-busy,
frantic-paced, hectic season that we are in with our children, the one that pulls
me in a hundred different directions at once and makes me feel as though I’ll
never catch up – is, in fact, a season. And, he reassured me that there always
are new seasons – each with their own joys and challenges.
Toward the middle of our conversation, he mentioned
technology … and how much people – er, me – relied upon it. I’m as guilty as anyone
about taking my work with me: answering emails on my phone when I’m out,
checking the news or the weather forecast, answering a text when we’re out to breakfast
or when I’m with my kids. It isn’t always, but I’m guilty on occasion. Bill
reminded me that whatever I’m texting/answering, probably isn’t as important as
what is in front of me at the moment. He’s probably right ~ but he did give me
permission to check my husband’s text;)
He said to always treat others the way you would want to be treated,
to not watch too much television, to vary your news sources, to not make too many
quick decisions, to invest properly and to live within your means – and to be
content there.
Something that resonated with me was when he said that while some circumstances may appear dire, they are exactly what is needed at the time. He talked about things not going the way he would have liked
– he loved being an ironworker, but a wartime injury made that career nearly
impossible. He wanted to be an electrical engineer, but color blindness thwarted
that. He said he was devastated, but he became involved in construction and said
he couldn’t have been happier. He stressed that some things happen, and they might
feel awful in the moment, but the outcome is better than you ever could have
hoped for.
I think I talk about this quite a bit, but I absolutely adore
cross-generational friendships. I am in awe of the lives of some of the people
I’ve interviewed. Some of those people
have remained friends and some have shared some of their experiences with my
children – expanding their circle of friends, giving them first-hand accounts
of historical events, or even inviting them to explore farms, chickens, tractors, airplanes, and tea sets from England. When I think about that, I realize just how beautiful this life is and how many amazing people fill it.
The wisdom that people can impart on our lives is vast. The value
of their stories is immeasurable, but the life-lessons – should you choose to
really listen – are the most beautiful take-aways.
My advice? Strike up a conversation outside of your
generation. The gift you receive will be great.
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| Wartime Propaganda that fell from the sky. |
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| Lyford's unit's newsletter. |
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| Table conversations about life. |
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| Lyford and the Honor Guard. |
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| Bill Lyford playing Taps during the Memorial Day Ceremony. |
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| Lyford's uniform, medals and biography on display in the window of a local business. |
