The Graybeards - Korean War Veterans Association

heartbreaking story with me; sadly his,
unlike mine, was anything but fiction. Mr.
Krepps was fortunate enough to return
home safely from the war, but his twin
brother disappeared. It was assumed that
he passed away in a Prisoner-of-War
camp; however, Mr. Krepps and his family
never received any physical confirmation.
I would like to thank Mr. Krepps for his
generosity in sharing a very personal
part of his life with a complete stranger
and share my fervent hope that his
prayers will be answered: that Richard
will come home.
Although the night was chill, the
familiar silhouette of Robert and
Susanna was still visible in the bright
moonlight. The two could be found
together on Forever Hill every Friday
night since early that summer when they
first met. A beautiful hideaway with an
extraordinary view, the hill was the perfect
place to sketch or think. In fact,
Susanna was sketching the horizon at
sunset when Robert stumbled into her
secret spot. He was new to Pine Valley
and had set out to explore the mountains
surrounding the small town on a hiking
trip. Grateful for another human presence,
Robert had asked Susanna to direct
him homeward, and Susanna, about to set
forth herself, replied that she would be
more than happy to show him back to
town. As the two walked they became
wonderful friends. After that they always
accompanied one another to Forever Hill.
Those Friday evenings came and went,
but the weekly outing was never forgotten.
This night, however, was no ordinary
night. The following day Robert would
be departing by train to go to boot camp.
There was a conflict in Korea, and Uncle
Sam needed brave young men to go keep
the peace. He would no doubt return safely,
however, for after World War II everyone
knew that the United States could not
be defeated. Upon hearing these words,
Susanna was not comforted in the least.
“I’ve only just met you,” she said
solemnly. “Why must you go now? You
have plenty to attend to here. Other men
can run off with the Army and their guns
and tanks, but not you. Whatever possessed
you to join the troops?”
“It’s just a chance to support my country.
I feel obliged to take this opportunity
since I’ve never been concerned about it
before. Remember, I’m the guy who
would be quite happy wandering through
the woods at any given time—well, I am
the guy who is wandering through the
woods at any given time, except for
Friday nights, of course,” he added with a
warm smile at Susanna. “I guess I feel
like I ought to be helping out the country
I take so much advantage of.”
“I take as much advantage of it as
you,” she said indignantly, “and I’m not
going off on any silly train tomorrow.”
“Silly? Maybe the whole thing is silly
to you. You women could never understand
what we Army men feel like.”
“You’re not an Army man yet, sweetheart,”
she reminded him, “And you
don’t understand how we feel either.
What am I supposed to do while you’re
away keeping order somewhere in Asia?
Sit here by myself? Sure, that’s what I
used to do, but I don’t think I could handle
the emptiness on this hill without you
beside me.”
Robert’s eyes moved swiftly to
Susanna’s, but they were focused on the
clump of grass by her feet. The lack of
conversation that followed was compensated
by the emotions pounding in each
heart and the thoughts running through
each head. Finally Robert broke the
silence.
“Without me, huh?” His voice was a
murmur. “You really would care that
much?”
Susanna slowly turned her head to
stare into the distance. “Evidently you’d
be surprised,” she replied with a tremor
in her voice. Her sparkling eyes found
their way back to his; the sparkle was not
the usual lively gleam but the glimmer of
tears. One spilled down her cheek, and
she sheepishly wiped it away.
They stood there, each searching the
others’ eyes and groping for some words
that could adequately express what they
wanted so badly to say. Those words,
however, were nowhere to be found.
Tears streamed from beneath Susanna’s
lashes, and finally Robert could no longer
withstand his own emotions. He pulled
Susanna close within the circle of his
strong arms and hugged her tightly, realizing
what is was that he wanted to say.
“There’s no need to cry—ah, Susie,
don’t cry over me,” he began. “I’ll be
Beth Murff
back, I promise, and nothing between us
will have changed. I’ll write to you when
I can, and when the whole thing’s over
I’ll be right back here by your side. I… I
can tell you this because I know that’s
exactly where I want to be.”
At this Susanna’s tears ceased to flood
down her cheeks and her attention
focused on Robert. Though red from crying,
her eyes shone with a deep happiness.
“So it’s not just me? You felt it too!
Right when I met you… it was just…
unreal. I just… have had this feeling
about you. But I didn’t want to say anything
about it in case you didn’t feel the
same. I didn’t want to lose you… but now
I will anyway.” Her face fell once more.
“No you won’t!” he insisted. “You’ll
never lose me, not to Korea, not to anyone.
You and I, we’ve got something special.
I’ve known it since that day I found
you here, and I’ve never forgotten. I don’t
forget things like that. Now, I have to
leave tomorrow whether you, whether I,
like it or not. I’ll be gone maybe a year or
so, and afterwards I’ll come right home to
you. We can get married, and everything
will be like it’s supposed to be. This is
just a setback. If we can handle being an
ocean apart, we can handle anything!”
“You’re right,” Susanna admitted
weakly. “I just don’t want to see you go.
I don’t want you to go anywhere that I
can’t come too. I want to be with you.
Forever, God willing.”
“We will be,” he promised and the two
stood hand in hand on Forever Hill gazing
out into the infinite expanse of moonlit
land as though looking into their own
future set before them.
The morning sun woke a reluctant
Susanna with it’s harsh rays assaulting
her eyes through the slits of the blinds. It
seemed that the day was against her
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The Graybeards