Lest we forget

Today Bleubeard and I don't want you to ever forget this day in history.  That's why we are sharing this journal page with everyone, as well as Art Journal Journey with the theme 'Tis the Season. 

This is the season of remembrance.

"Today is a day to remember, to honor, and show respect for those brave men and women who died this day on Pearl Harbor."

"The attack, formally known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor led to the U.S. entering WWII. Since the attack happened without any formal warning, it was later declared a war crime."

"Little did the Japanese know about the Americans. They thought we would not be willing to fight because we were not homogenous, and would not stick together, but run in many separate directions. However, the exact opposite happened."

"A total of 2,335 service men were killed and 1,143 were wounded. All were considered non-combatant because no formal declaration of war had occurred while the attack was in progress."

Please note these statistics are from History. org.   Wikipedia has different stats.  They claim 2,403 Americans died and 1,178 were wounded.

This is the famous photo of the sinking of the U.S.S. Arizona,

which is now the sunken ship that has become the memorial at Pearl Harbor.

Aerial view of Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor showing oil still seeping from the ship's bunkers

The sneak attack sparked outrage among American citizens, the news media, the government, and the world.

The attack took place on Sunday morning, December 7, 1941.  A minimal contingent of soldiers was on duty at the time. Most offices on the base were closed and many servicemen were on leave for the weekend.  Had there been more men on the eight battleships, there would have been even greater loss.

The attack occurred in two waves, with a third wave considered, but not carried out.  The first wave created the greatest damage, with all eight battleships being sunk.  By 1942, six of the eight battleships were back in service.  Only the Arizona, which was never raised from the silt bed where it sunk, and the Utah, which is now also a memorial, were not recommissioned.  The Missouri has been turned into a museum.

Do you want to know more about this battle and what led up to it?  Here is what I wrote last year on December 7.  If you haven't seen the post before, I encourage you to take a few minutes today to do so.

For this journal page, I began by creating a page using various inks and paints I hoped would look like camouflage.  I copied and printed the focal image found on the internet, then added the computer generated words I colored using water soluble crayons. 

Bleubeard and I are so happy you chose to visit us today and hope you'll also join us at Art Journal Journey where our themes are Favorite Season or 'Tis the Season. Please don't forget to hug a vet today, share stories you have read or heard about Pearl Harbor, and let others, especially the younger generations, know we must never forget the loss of life that sparked the U.S's entry into another world war.