Erdiakoff 134 Brooke Williams ENGL 134 10/7/17 Sequence II oe dep, In the background of a chatty family barbeque, a crackling radio muffled, “An atomic bomb has been dropped on Hiroshima, Japan. The once noisy backyard full of loved ones hushed to a sileneg, Everyone's eyes gazed over to see a young woman sitting beside the radio, COALL elaborate He schere You Could hear a pin dng’ Sec Ike brad. her ears glued to the surface, sobbing. Her glazed over, tear-filled eyes were full of tremendous worry and anxiety. By the distressed look in her eyes, it was evident that there was someone on Sounds the other side of that radi oy ‘ho she was close to and loved. That young woman is Dorothy Claire a, Imrigary, now Lud7, a person longing to know if her fiancé who was involved in the bombing of Hiroshima was alive and well. Dorothy Claire Ludz was married to the late Dan Franklin Ludz, a marine during World War II. Dorothy is 96 years old and was alive to witness and go through the hardships of living geod, eelate wi on the home front during the wartimes. She went to college at Fresno State University and lived ", pes fo Your in Kerman, Califor forthe majoiy of her life, Recently Dorothy relocated ands now living | pose in San Luis Obispo, California with her caretakers. T went to meet up with Mrs. Ludz at her home in sunny San Luis Obispo. I pulled up onto the front of a long driveway, and in the distance convened a large cottage style house. The greenery in the front yard was maintained immaculately, and a variety of luscious flowers lined the walkway up to the grand entrance. To my right was a large koi pond, surrounded withErdiakoff 134 clusters of purple and magenta bougainvillea flowers in full bloom. I made it up the steps to a deep red front door, with antique glass panes throughout, that squealed with character. I gave the old door a knock; and a quiet, gentle voice from inside said, “Come in!” with excitement. I opened the door and I was immediately stunned with the fragrance of floral perfume and antique jalking Wks Dodty!s house wood"Dorothy’s house was likt a history museum; every object in sight looked like y ewe nga ry jery obj ig ithad an engaging story to tell. Black and white photographs lined her walls, and old rifles were ‘mounted on both sides of her television. A quaint coffee table had its place in the center of the room; on it sat a large box full of handwritten letters, and a little bow! of hard candy that was set out for me. A blanket of comfort fell over me, and I felt very welcome-Ipwgs as if I was walking rte oY ov grandmother's house. Lines of clear tubing ran across the floor and led up to small, size five, slipper covered feet. The tubes climbed up to the arms of the chair and sat right under her nose. The oxygen gas coming from her tank made a calm continuous buzzing sound as she spoke the words, “Welcome in!” Her smiley, wrinkled face beamed with positivity. I could not wait to hear her story. Try te. vee {Living at hom? during World War II was more difficult than expected. A civilian who was one C living at hom)endured all ofthe hardships thatthe war brought, all aspects oftheir lives were d Recent Wereteds finances, education, and relationships with loved ones. Soldiers fighting in the war are & d always the focus of stories of all of the pain and suffering during World War Il, but families and 7 Aa Iss friends of these soldiers came across many hardships as well throughout this era. During World War II, Dorothy Clair Ludz was going to college at Fresno State University. The demographic of students in attendance was unusual; the attendees were all girls and very few boys. The only boys in attendance were there because they were unfit to enlist in the war due to physical FaberS = Erdiakoff 134 At this time, many prices were inflated at grocery stores, and many necessary goods were very scarce. Perishable goods were so limited and hard to find that Dorothy eould remember ¢> specifically that one of her dear friends worked at the grocery store, and the only way Dorothy could get her hands on some butter was if her friend would hide a stick for her whenever a shipment would come in. There were specific rules for civilians when it came to purchasing 1 ea imported goods; Buying ee g00ds was ano go. There was no obtaining of oil or silk from Japan, and nonetheless, you did not want to be seen with goods supporting the enemy. There ‘were certain goods you did want to buy and sell to support your soldiers, like wool. At the time Dorothy’s father owned and ran a sheep farm, and harvested loads of wool from the sheep. During that ine, Dorothy’s family was particulary prosperous; the demand for wool was FY 5, : A ily high because of the multitude of blankets and supplies made from wool that, cy, waheae el Le jorothy’s family was fortunate to have a strong income at this time, ~ SEatence tlre for most people’s finances were affected negatively. As prices went up, the average income went down. Family life on the home front was difficult, a lot of the time families were ripped apart by war time and what they entailed. Dorothy first found out about the news about the bom! ng of Pearl ¢_ Harborsasee the radi, Fhe reporters explained this devastation in great deal, Dorothy became very concerned and worried for the safety of her family and friends because she knew that many of them would enlist or be drafted into the war. Afier Pearl Harbor, Dorothy’s first cousin-whom A she was very close torfob Irtigaty was drafted into the war; along with many of her friends who also lived in Kerman. Dorothy's heart was broken to see her loved ones go. To stay in touch with her friends and family throughout the course of the war when times were tough, Dorothy sentMice Erdiakoff 134 and received hundreds of letters to and from her friends, family, and fiancé. To support her country and loved ones who were serving in the war, Dorothy took part in events that worked with the USO (United Service Organization). She would take care of soldiers when they would come home to rest and enjoy leisure time. Even though Dorothy was not serving in the war, herself and many others who stayed home were working diligently to support their country After World War Il was concluded, Dorothy was on her last college semester at Fresno State University. The campus was bustling like it was before the war was underway. Now, and one Mite again, the university demographic had changed significantly; a great number of soldiers retuned back home and were attending college through the GI Bill. As exaggerated prices slowly floated back down to where they were before World War II had begun, all of life seemed to have rested back to normality. In three years, eight months, and twenty-two days, the United States and its civilians had gone through so much. I was in awe as Dorothy explained to me how life was during World War I; she was so cheerful and happy to share her story to me. Mrs. Ludz had gone through so much hardship in her life, yet she remained so positive about how World War II affected her life. ~~ The process of connecting, conversing, and interviewing a woman suchas, j Dorothy Ludz was a very interesting and rewarding occurrence. It was a great experience and etter opportunity to learn these facts from a person’s lifetie memory and personal first hand experiences than any text book handed to me, The past generations of people are very sincere, genuine, and wise beyond compare. Speaking with Dorothy Ludz. was a great opportunity, and it was very refreshing to find out details and information about World War II from a person who lived on the home front di the wartime, and from a woman’s perspective. Trplénent male qua tes