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Evan Leong: You mean he moved you to tent number one?
Daniel Inouye: He called in the staff and says, “Take him to tent number one.” I had 17 transfusions. So the crew did not make a mistake. You know if they hadn’t looked after me for a couple of more hours, I think I would have just faded away.
Evan Leong: How were you coherent at that time?
Daniel Inouye: Well it’s part of discipline because after you’ve been in combat for about a year, you know that once you sleep, you go into shock and that’s it. So I made certain that I was awake. So my last wound was at noon but I stayed until three to get the men settled down. And I was just determined to stay awake. I was carried on a stretcher all the way for nine hours up and down mountains.
Evan Leong: Your men carried you?
Daniel Inouye: Prisoners. We couldn’t afford to let the men carry, we needed all the men; so just one person to guard me and German prisoners.
Kari Leong: When you were in the hospital rehabilitating is that when you were next to Bob Dole?
Daniel Inouye: Yes I got very friendly with Bob Dole. In fact I used to kid and I used to say, “Why don’t you cut it off?” It was useless. Well he told me once in a firm voice, “I came in with full limbs, I’m going out with full limbs.” He did even if it’s useless you know. There was another senator there. He was a colonel. He’s name was Phil Hart. My office is in the Hart Building. So I had the privilege of knowing two senators before they were senators. But an important part of my life was in the hospital. And it’s something that you don’t see present day patients go through. Today for example, a patient of my disability would be out of the hospital in about six months. Then after that if he needs treatment, he goes to the VA hospital. In my case I was in a military hospital for 21 months. My surgical and medical side was resolved for in about 9 months. I received a prosthetic appliance. My side was patched up. My leg patched up. And then they began rehab and that’s interesting. I never drove before I left Hawaii, so I had to take lessons to qualify me to drive in every state and in every territory. I had to play a couple of sports. I qualified in basketball and swimming. I had to learn how to do carpentry, electrical work and plumbing, not as an expert. For example you may be asking yourself, “How do I pound a nail with one hand?” In those days you can find spools of thread with a hole in the middle. Now you put that over your target, put a nail in there and bang pick up the spool and then boom, boom. I’m pretty good at that. Then I had to learn a musical instrument. Saxophone was out of the question. You need two hands for that. So they suggested the trumpet. All you need are three fingers, right? Well the instructor said you can read music because I read music before. But your lips are too soft. My wife would say so too. But he said, “Why don’t you try the piano?” I qualified on the piano playing one hand. But it also taught you real rehabilitation. Now when I got home from the hospital, my mother asked me after I spent about a week at home, I said, “I’m going to Waikiki.” She said, “Oh you’re going shopping.” I said, “No, I’m going swimming.” And she was horrified. The thought that I would expose myself with my injury, in public, to swim. Well in Michigan to swim we would do so in a public lake and you get used to it. I just hope today is the same and we can do the same thing. That taught us how to dance. I don’t know if I should tell you this. Is this a family program? They even taught us how to make love.
Evan Leong: What do you mean?
Daniel Inouye: Okay I’ll tell you. One lesson; one day and the lesson was make certain that your loved one sleeps on your bad side. So it’s human nature not to expose your ugliness to your loved one, right? If you had scars on one side you would want your wife on the other side. That’s human nature. And the instructors say, “If you have your loved one on your good side and you put your arm around her, you better have educated toes.”
Evan Leong: That way we learn at least something new in every interview. (Laughter)
Evan Leong: When you were in the hospital, in your book you mentioned a nurse who was trying to help you with a pack of cigarettes and that became a learning lesson for you. Will you share that with us?
Daniel Inouye: In those days just about every man smoked. We had free cigarettes. That’s how you get addicted. I never smoked before I got into service. And so I’m in a hospital. I’m now conscious and I wanted a cigarette. So I asked the nurse, “May I have a cigarette?” She said, “Just a minute.” She went away. She brought a brand new pack. Put it on my chest and walked away. And I’m thinking to myself, I had to rip it open. I’ve never opened a pack single handedly. How do you do it? So first thing I thought about was just to tear with my mouth and tore off half the cigarettes but I got it out and in my lips and the nurse comes by and says, “Oh you need a light?” So she goes back and picks up a book of matches. You know the folding type? She throws it on my chest. You know I want to curse her. I opened it up. “What am I suppose to do with this?” And I did everything possible and nothing happened so she came by and said, “Oh good you quit smoking. Smoking is not good for you.” And I had to say, “I don’t know how to light it.” So she taught me how to light it one handed. Then she said, “I’m not going to be around here for the rest of your life. You’ll have to learn how to light your own matches, cut your own meat, dress yourself and do everything else.” So from now on you’re going to be learning. I fell in love with her.
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Writer Profile
Jay-R Patron
Jay-R Patron, 24 years old, currently works as content provider for a multinational IT consultancy firm, under its interactive marketing department.
He was a writer for Hawaii-based Greater Good Inc., a media company behind the much-acclaimed Greater Good Radio. The show promotes social entrepreneurship and servant leadership.
Jay-r is a Journalism and Communication and Media Studies graduate from the University of Southern Queensland.
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Comments
meddahi | Sep 8th, 2007
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم والصلاة والسلام على أشرف المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين أما بعد .. ببعد التحية والسلام على أهل المحبة والإكرام
لقد أضفت إلى القصيدة 16بيت من الشعر أرجو أن تنال إعجابكم وبجانبي
صديقي الحميم
وهو طالب نجيب ذو قريحة قوية تعتمد على الحفظ والإستذكار
أتمنى له كل التوفيق ولكل الدارسين والدارسات آمبن
والله ولي التوفيق
الشاعر العصامي مداحي العيد هذه القصيدة من بحر الطويل 28/08/2007
قد انحــدر الدمــع من الأحـــداق ..... فـما أصـعـب الوجــد بعـد الفـراق...
لقد أرقــتـني بهـــواها في ليال قد....... عــوى الذئــبُ فيها من الإشتياق ...
فـما أعــــذب الحــبَّ إذا كان وافيا ....... تُـتـــمّهُ مكــــــــــارم الخـــلاق....
فذبت كما الشمع يذوب على ثوب......... العشيق ولـم يـدر من الإرهاق....
ولولا المحـــــبة التي ليَّـنت قلبا ........... فصارت عواطفه مثل البراق....
لكان الفؤاد كصوان الجـمادات .......... على النار يرمـــونه للإحتراق....
فأصبح من هوى الحبيبة عاطلا ......... كطــير أصـيبَ في جناح الأفاق....
فزالت عزائم الحــياة من القلب .......... تفـتَّتَ جــسم الفـتى كـالأوراق....
وما أهون الحبََّ الذي كان مبنيا ......... على النــــفع هيـّنٌ كمثل النفاق....
وما الحبُّ إلا نخلةٌ سمقت تُعطي......... لكُلّ مــن الأجــــــيال تمر المذاق.
وحر الهوى أذاب قطب المشاعر ........ كنـهـر جرت مياهه في السواقي
نمت به أشجار تــــدلت ثمارها ......... من الغصـن تـُقطـف من الإلتصاق ...
فكــيف سنشـعــر بقيمتـنا إن لم ......... نُـفـعــّلْ مــحـــــــبةً نأت بالطلاق ...
وهل ينفع العــناق إن كان قلبكَ ......... بعـــيدٌ كبعــد المشـــرقين واقي ...
إذا كان حبهم من القــلب يمكث .......... إذا بقيت أرواحــهم في الرماق ...
ونحن نحبذ المحـــبة إن كانت ........... مصـــادرها منــــابع الأشـواق...
إذا ما صفا القـــاعُ رأيتَ لآلئا ........... بريـقٌ صفــاؤها مع الماء راقي ....
لقد حيّرت بحسنها أعيُنا راغت......... إليــها بـــــــــلا رويــة كالبُــراق...
ولولا الغرام ما عرفتُ المحبة ........ التي شغــلت قــلـبا يريد التـلاقي...
فتى ً قد أصيبَ قلبُهُ من كدر الهوى...... هُمومٌ تراكمت على الأعناق...
لقد أرّقــــته أحـــــــــلامٌ تركّـبت........ من العشق إستحسانُه كالمذاق...
أتت تشتكي من شغف الحبّ قد أذى ..... مشاعرها من لوعةِ الإشتياق..
فقلتُ لها إصبري على العشق صبرا قد.....تنالين منه عـــزّةَ الأخلاق...
بكت من حرارة الجوى أدمُعا كوت ...... فؤادي ووجداني من الأعماق...
وقالت فكــيف يصبرُ القلبُ قبل أن ....... يرى القلبَ راض أمام الرفاق..
تحسرتُ باكــــيا علـيها وكـيف لا ...... تســيل دُمـــوعُنا مـن الأحداق
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