Remembering Pearl Harbor Day, December 7, 1941
by Aurora Dell’Oca Leveroni
My friend Theresa and I -who were living in San Francisco on December 7, 1941- left church services and headed for the local bakery, Nebbias, to pick up some sweet rolls. When we reached my home we could smell that steaming pot of coffee that my mother had ready for us to enjoy as part of our Sunday morning ritual. As we were drinking the coffee and eating a sweet roll, I switched on the little table radio to listen to music. Instead of music, there was an announcer’s voice blaring that “Japan has just bombed Pearl Harbor.” I remarked how strange it was to have a situation program, when usually on Sundays the norm was to listen to music or religious programs. I switched from station to station and there was that same blaring news of the attack and announcers advising all military on leave to return to their bases. It was then we realized that this was actually happening and we wondered where in the world Pearl Harbor was.
Theresa and I decided to hop a street car which would bring us to the shore of the Pacific Ocean. On our way, we encountered a young soldier and told him the news and that he was to report to his base. He just looked at us and waved us off. We just couldn’t convince him of the attack. When we boarded the street car we noticed that the passengers did not say a word, no one spoke but their faces reflected what we felt: shock and fear.
Having reached our destination at the beach we could see that there were people looking out toward the horizon, as if they could witness the devastation that had taken place thousands of miles away in the Pacific.
As we stood there, I looked around and there were people kneeling with heads bowed quietly, praying. One couple had their arms around each other; some were silently weeping; others just stood there with that same look we all shared of shock and fear. The only sound that could be heard was the soft lapping of the waves on the shore.
The scene on that day has been etched in my memory forever.
Originally published at https://annetkent.kontribune.com.
