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I grew up knowing about Pearl Harbor because my grandfather had very strong feelings about it; I think that may have even been the reason he joined the Army. He had a pretty strong dislike for the Japanese until the day he died, but interestingly enough, he didn't mind the Germans even though those were the ones he fought. One time in middle school we had to write an essay about Pearl Harbor, and the teacher about went through the roof when she saw that I had written "Japs" in my paper, but that's what I had always heard them called!
Anyway, so even though I've known about Pearl Harbor for as long as I can remember, it didn't seem "real" to me until I actually went there this past summer. The memorial was the saddest, most unbelievable thing. I can't even imagine what it must've been like. There's a man in my hometown who has scars all up and down his arms from the attack, and he'll talk about it if you ask him. I keep meaning to go and talk to him, because there are getting to be fewer and fewer Pearl Harbor veterans around all the time.
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