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Poignant
- 01/10/09
- 8
I'm not sure exactly why it is, but this letter just tears me up. I've come across it a few times now, and every time I hear or read it, it affects me deeply. It's a letter from Lt. Col. John Butler of the 5th Marine Division and was written to his son, John Jr.. It was one of many letters sent from father to son while dad was far away, fighting in a terrible war.
February 18, 1945
Dear Johnny Boy:
Tomorrow morning Dad is going to play war with all his strength, so that Mommy can sing you "A Wee Little Lad" and mean every word of it.
Red will be right along side Dad. You would laugh to see the way we are dressed. I am carrying so many guns, and they are sticking out on all sides.
As the man of the house, Dad is counting on you to continue in helping Mom in every way.
When I come home, I will have many stories to tell you about those ships and planes and jeeps and trucks.
Thanks for praying for Dad.
Your Proud Dad.*
The morning after sending this letter, John Butler hit the hard coral beaches of Iwo Jima. Just days later he was killed in the performance of his duties. This letter was the last one Johnny Boy ever received from his Proud Dad.
As quoted by Douglas Phillips in The Little Boy Down the Road.
I am a follower of Jesus Christ, a husband to Aileen and a father to three young children. I write books and blogs for fun while doing web design and consulting for a living. I worship and serve at 
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Comments (8)
Tim,
That is a really moving story. "Johnny Boy" Butler is featured in the documentary that Doug Phillips produced called "The League of Grateful Sons". It's a really good film... I highly recommend seeing it. You can buy it from VisionForum.com
Thanks for all the work you put into your blog. I really enjoy reading it.
Lyrics that dad was referring to from "A wee little lad."
You May Grow Up To Be A Soldier,A Soldier, Like Your Dear Old Dad.And Perhaps In Some Famous BattleThey Will Read Your Name With Joy
We don’t need any more heroes but something tells me that as long as we’re on Earth people will find things to go to war over.
Mark 13:12 (ESV)And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death.
Wow.
As a father myself, the heart-wrenching emotions bound up in this letter is not lost on me.
In all honesty, the only remaining "sting of death", if you could call it that, for me is the prospect of leaving my wife and kids behind upon my demise. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, and yet my love for my family provides that "sting".
He who loves any earthly relation above Christ is not worthy of Him, the Lord says, and loving Christ above our families is the most loving thing we can do for them.
http://underdogtheology.blogspot.com/
Mannn... powerful stuff. :)
This is such a precious gift we have and a huge responsibility (being Dads). May we all remember to share this kind of love and closeness with our sons (and daughters).Thanks for this little 'treasure' Tim!
Tim,As a Marine officer and a father of two sons, I thank you for this. I had not seen it before. I have had similar thoughts while in Iraq. By God's grace I have not had to give my life like John Butler. But, if He chose to call me home from some foreign battlefield, I would want to leave my sons with thoughts like these.
Jim Brown,I disagree with your comment that we don't need any more heroes. Human beings need, long for, crave heroes. We need someone to emulate and pattern our lives after. It is true that Jesus Christ is the ultimate Hero; but, that doesn't mean we don't need lesser heroes to show us in sometimes more tangible ways what He is like. The heroes that most inspire us and live on in stories and history are those that image the characteristics of Jesus, especially courage, perseverance and especially self-sacrifice. In the Marine Corps we look to past heroes like Lt O'Bannon, Smedley Butler, John Lejeune and John Basilone to inspire us to live up to their legacy and aspire to feats like theirs. In God's army we can look to Daniel, Nehemiah, Paul, Luke, John Mark, Stephen, Justin Martyr, Martin Luther, John Calvin and a host of others in the same way. On the contrary, we are in desperate need of heroes in our modern day to show us we can live lives of integrity, courage and self-sacrifice.
Semper Fidelis (by His grace),LtCol Craig Barnett