Grandpa's Letters 100 Years Later
Post date: Dec 11, 2017 6:0:35 PM
We get used to everything. Our familiar environment is no longer for us, for a long time, a source of wonder. Even when one has a sincere attachment for the soil where one lives, one ends up not seeing the soft undulations of the landscape, this typical alternation of valleys and hillsides, steep forests and large cultivated areas. It is necessary then for a guest, a visitor, a stranger to point the finger at that which we have not seen for a long time.
Look at the Current World from the Old (by Christian Baujard in the "Le Point Com" Dec 2017 )
(Written in French & translated - with the original text from the letters)
Such an observer from afar had one day described Is-sur-Tille in his letters to his wife to tell her how amazed and inspired he was by the skyline sighted all around the wooden barracks where he lived. His name was John Stevenson. He was one of the American soldiers quartered in the huge camp installed in the plain of Is-sur-Tille nearby from Marcilly station. A native from Illinois, the region of his birth had rather accustomed him to a landscape of a flatness uninterrupted for hundreds of kilometers.
At the centennial commemoration of Camp Williams at Is-sur-Tille September 24, Jeff Bockman, grandson of John Stevenson, spoke to revive the testimony of his grandfather. He quotes verbatim the letters that his family has been able to preserve for a century.
This part of France is more beautiful than anything I have ever seen in America – hills in every direction – streams of clear, cold water running all around filled with trout, the hills covered with pine.
First I want to go to the village (3 miles) & buy a pair of wooden shoes for baby! As we were marching up from the train I saw a little child her age walking along wearing them – nearly everyone wears them on the street & when they get to where they were going - they leave them on the door step – overshoes.
This is a dandy place & the little village near us is very quaint – it reminds me of Venice – as there is a river dashing through it & the houses are built right in the water – so that the women do their washing right from their backdoor – quite a stunt – they have a wooden paddle & beat the wadding out of whatever they are washing on a stone slab.
Yesterday was a lovely day - for a change, & I took a long bicycle ride throught the country - it was lovely - but oh boys! My setter is ruined. This county is very hilly - but perfectly beautiful!
I want to stay in the place - it is lovely - & there are lots of other places not so nice. This is absolutely country with trees, creeks, rivers, hills, etc & the air is wonderful.
We are very fortunate in being sent to the post – it is a dandy .. I hope to be stationed here permanently.
Dear I would give anything if you could be here to enjoy the air & scenery with me! You would be so excited over everything along the road ... today I struck a patch of violets a block long – single ones & very fragrant .. I still have blooming fruit trees to look at & tiny gardens, neat as wax in which the vegetables are planted by ruler I guess – every one just in the right place.
Did John Stevenson find a black spot in this idyllic environment? The weather! Because the spring of 1917 was particularly rainy:
The rain has stopped … the average is about five rainy days each week and the mud is a fright; our quarters are about two miles from here and nothing but deep slimy, gooey mud to walk on; Don’t be surprised if I come home with web feet
John Stevenson returned unharmed to the United States, but died in 1924, and his grandson never knew him. But Jeff came back several times in Is-sur-Tille and if it does not have for our region the same wonder as his grandfather, he is very attached to it and has many friends among us.
Comments About Grandpa's letters - by Jeff Bockman
My mother was only 3 when he died, so she didn't know anything about him.The letters that he sent home in 1918 while stationed in France let her and then me learn about him as a person, what he liked, and what he thought about things.
In 2011 my wife and I first visited Is-sur-Tille to see first hand what he was writing about and try to walk in his footsteps. We were given a whirlwind tour of the town, the former camp, and surrounding areas to see what they thought he was writing about. Christian and his wife taught English at the middle school and were our translators. Pierre and Denise were our hosts, and we also met and spent time with the mayor and his wife.
In Oct 2011 Christian and his wife visited us during a vacation in the US.
In 2011 The Society Histoire Tille Ignon published translated versions of grandpa's letters (by Christian & Pierre)
In 2012 we retuned for the 8th of May memorial celebration and spent a few more days to really get to see the town and spend time with them. I even attended a city hall meeting.
2017 - parts of his letters were on display at the cultural center exhibit and were quoted in the program given on Friday night (22 Sept). I also read portions at the ceremony on Sunday 24 Sept. that were translated to the audience by Christian.
The early letters are available online at www.alenjes.com. (the rest will be posted next year.)
Needless to say Grandpa has had more than his 15 minutes of fame with the letters.
Be sure to preserve your family's letters. That is a big part of the message in my book
Give Your Family A Gift That Money Can't Buy / Record and Preserve Your Family's History.