The Sea Shell Necklace

I am not quite sure how or why, but the Wheatley’s became my pen pals when I was about five years old.There are some people in your life you will remember forever people that are always in your mind and heart even if not at the front. For me two of these people are Mr. and Mrs. Wheatley. I remember always seeing them at church service on Sundays. Mr. Wheatley was a World War II veteran and his wife was a member of the women's auxiliary. Due to Mr. Wheatley's former service they were able to travel a lot.

Most times the conversation’s that we had in our letters were narrated by Mr. Wheatley even if they were sometimes written by Mrs.Wheatley (there was a large difference in their hand writing). They would send me letters and postcards from there different destinations and sometimes even little nicknacks. Such as when they went to Washington they sent me pictures of them at the World War II monument and copies of the pictures of Mr. Wheatley in the radio control room during his time in the service. My mother would read me the letters and help me in my writing a response. Even when Mr. and Mrs. Wheatley where not traveling they would send me letters telling about various things such as former travels, stories and pictures of his time in the service, details about their garden and sometimes even pictures and information about their pets.

But there is one gift that they brought back for me from one of their trips that I treasure. This object is one they collected on there trip to Hawaii one year. It is a long sea shell necklace that has two different types of shells on it that are polished and shined to perfection. Mr. Wheatley gave this to me when they returned to church. Mr. Wheatley had me hold my hand out and had the necklace wrapped in a ball and placed it in my small hand and closed my fingers around it as if he knew this is a moment I would remember the smooth shells in my palm the necklace not quite fitting in my hand. I have always kept that necklace out even now almost 13 years later. It is hanging up with my womans auxiliary hat and jacket and I always try to keep it with that in memory of the two of them.

But as time would have it as the years progressed the letters became slimmer and slimmer until they just stopped all together. Then as Mr. and Mrs. Wheatley became older and older their trips to church became infrequent. As did that of my mother's and I. Eventually we changed churches to be closer to my grandparents. After that I did not see them hardly at all other than in parades and large town events and even that they eventually stopped attending. Mrs. Wheatley passed away a couple years ago and Mr. Wheatley is now in a nursing home and in his late nineties he is one of the last world war II veterans left in Vermont. I regret losing touch with them especially now. So as I look at the necklace as I did all those years ago it gives me hope for the future to live a full happy life as they did and maybe even inspire some person or child as they inspired me.