October 6, 1943
Dear Folks,
Well I certainly have learned one lesson. I have learned to have my teeth worked on by a civilian dentist. As soon as I get a furlough I am going to the dentist and let him get my teeth in good shape so the army dentists can’t find anything wrong. Of course the army has good dentists but they work so fast that they are actually rough and they don’t take any personal interest in you.
The reason I am saying this is because I went to the dentist today. There is a regular dental clinic here. They found one tooth that had a hole in it. (I think a filling had come out). First one dentist drilled it out in a helter skelter fashion (boy did it hurt) and then he decided that he couldn’t save the tooth. He sent me to another dentist who gave me two shots in the mouth, then he pulled the tooth. I felt awfully sick for a couple of hours but I feel better now.
For the first couple of days of this week we took several tests and had an interview or two. These were to decide where (and if) we would be placed in ASTP.
We have also been learning a little about drilling, caring for our rifles and making our pack. These things are just to give us a head start on our 13 weeks basic training which starts next week.
I can easily see why soldiers begin to enjoy the army as soon as their basic starts. It is because they are given encouragement, which keeps their spirits up. One of the first things out lieutenant said to us was that we were going to have the best platoon in the company.
I think that we do have the best officers in the company. This means our lieutenant to sergeant and corporal. We were drilled a little the other day by another lieutenant and he was not near so pleasant and helpful as our own.
I wonder how Richard is coming in football and how everything is going along. I haven’t heard from you yet since I have been here, but I suppose the letters will start coming through soon.
Love
Donald