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By: Charles Wendell Boatright
The Excalibur the Metal of the Greatest Generation
The term Excalibur, or Escalibur, refers to a sword that was made from the finest steel that King Arthur pulled from the rock in Sir Thomas Malory’s book about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Excalibur is the term I use to describe the metal of The Greatest Generation during World War II and those that have served our country since our country was founded. Excalibur is the closest term to describe the character of two men that help shape my life. One was my uncle, and the other was a Boy Scout leader.
I had the rare opportunity on two special occasions to listen to a rare personal accounts from these two men whose service represented the men and women who served and are serving to provide our liberty and freedom that we enjoy. One was during a viewing of the movie Saving Private Ryan, with a uncle that served in the 1st Division and the other was during a boy scout camp outing. Both left an enduring impression on me that I will never forget. I learn three valuable lessons from these two men; Perseverance, Focus, and Patience.
The Untold Story From Man I knew as Uncle Wendell Boatright
I finally convinced my surviving uncle (Wendell) to go with me and my wife to view Saving Private Ryan. I understood my uncle’s reluctance to see the movie, but this could be the only time I would have had to share part of his dramatic experience and appreciate what this generation did for an entire world.
During the movie- I saw my uncle sweat and tremble as the first part of the movie played out. But it wasn’t until the movie had concluded that I saw the full impact this experience had on my uncle like he just relived his experience of World War II again. I saw my uncle, that was tough as nails, cry for the first time in my life. A hard-shelled man that went in with the first wave of the 1st infantry division had his head bent over in his hands and was crying at the conclusion of the movie. As people that passed by from the viewing the movie, each one placed their hands on his back and said, “Thank you!” One woman even placed a red rose in my uncle hands, that represented a great gesture of her appreciation.
After the movie, we had dinner at the Dixie Cafe in North Little Rock, Arkansas. My uncle regaining his composure, I decided to discuss the movie with him and his reactions. I asked my uncle, “Was the opening scene dramatic for you?” My uncle replied, “Yes, it was too realistic, as if the landing occurred yesterday.
My uncle explained that what occur later in the movie, was even more dramatic for me of what was took place in Ramelle, France (in the movie) that was even more terrifying personally for me, almost nerve-wracking.” I asked my uncle, “The combat scene?” My uncle replied with his teeth meshed together before he answered, “I had a personal encounter with a Tiger Tank on the D-Day plus three, and the sound and vibration from that Tiger Tank, that distinct squelching sound and it stopping then traversing was almost paralyzing. That sound makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up among other things. Once you hear that sound and feel that heavy vibration, it never escapes your mind.”
In a quiet moment, my uncle explained how he felt that something buried in his mind for 54 years ago was finally being dealt with and confronted for the first time in decades. My uncle continued, What was special was that now people knew what we experienced and they actually cared. I never expected everyone in that theater to come by and thank me. I replied, “Uncle Wendell, there were nearly 100 people in the theater, my age and younger, who came by to thank you!”
My second story from the Greatest Generation:
Angels From The Sky to Guide Us
The second instance was while I was on a boy scout camp out to work on obtaining our Forestry and Hiking badges in the Boston Mountains in the heart of the Ozarks in Arkansas. The troop was all gathered around the campfire, as we listened to stories of mystical events, from the recent and distant past. We are were required to tell a story around the fire in order to work toward the public speaking badge.
Mr. House, our troop leader, was a flight engineer, on-board a B-24 Liberator, based out of North Africa. Their main mission was bombing runs to hit Germany petroleum fields. Remember, we were a group of fifteen-year-old boy scouts, who were hanging on to every word their troop leader said. Mr. House was a great storyteller in a slow and deliberate manner a master of details. This is his story:
Mr. House explained– I can remember a mission when we were badly damaged by flak while we were over the target. We had to leave the formation shortly just after clearing the target area and dropping our ordnance. We were flying alone, and expected to be attacked by enemy fighters at any minute. Suddenly two P-51 Mustang fighters (nicknamed- Angels on our shoulders) dropped out of the sky and lined up off our right wing. The fighter pilots lowered their flaps in order to lower their airspeed, allowing them to fly in formation with us. After settling into position, each of the P-51 pilots pulled back their canopies. Both fighter pilots were African-Americans Tuskegee Airmen with white silk scarfs flapping in the wind. These guys were our saving Angels.
Both pilots were waving and smiling, best looking smile I have ever seen. Each fighter (plane) was named after a Bible character. I can only remember one of their names. The plane had “Lil’ Moses” written across the nose of the plane, just forward of the cockpit. The P-51’s stayed with us for quite some time until we approach our base. Then when we prepared to land at our base with our wheels down, both planes did a victory roll above us and left as we were landing. They certainly were God sent and made a bomber crew very happy on a very special day.
Below is an excerpt is from “Reflections of World War II,” written by: Aniel House Sr., and Aniel House, Jr., on pg. 40.
Personal Story Told of The Red Tails, The Tuskegee Airmen:
The ‘Red Tails,” or the Tuskegee Airmen, were the only African-American squadron that looked beyond their situation and focused on their objective. Focusing on the objective and managing the conditions are great attitudes to apply to life in general, sports particularly, and golf specifically. In golf as in life, your conditions will always change, but the objective will always remain the same. Be aggressive on your objective and conservative in your approach. This is why I enjoy sports and history because of the life lessons learned.
Below is an excerpt for my book, The ESPY Golf Swing Coach, on pages 56 and 57:
6.3 The Greatest Generation’s character and sacrifice were shown by the accomplishments of the Red Tails, the 332nd Fighter Group, also known as the Tuskegee Airmen. The Red Tails were the first African-American military pilots to fly escort and combat missions during World War II. The Red Tails flew 311 missions during World War II, and sixty-six pilots were killed in action. The Red Tails lost twenty-seven bombers to the enemy between June 9, 1944, and March 24, 1945.[i] The Red Tails predominantly flew the classic P-51 Mustang, illustrated in Figure 6-1. The 332nd Fighter Group became well-known among bomber squadrons. Due to the success of the 332nd’s proficiency, bomber squadrons specifically requested the 332nd Fighter Group as escorts into Germany.
There are three words that I associate with these two men accounts that can be applied to our life in general and golf specifically. The first is Perseverance. Regardless of the situation or odds you never give up on your self or your ability to succeed. The second word is Focus. Conditions will change and set back and failures will occur; but the objective remains the same, finishing. The third is Patience. This is the hardest to develop; but has the most potential.
You understand these three term you will demonstrate what I call Excalibur. And in golf you will use all three. Remember the impossible just takes a little more time to accomplish. Also something else to remember- You can learn more from a failure than you can your successes. This is what I refer to as self-coaching technique. This is one reason I teach golf as a sport to help kids develop physically, mentally, and especially Spiritually:
A Library of Golf Training Download Technique for under $20.00
By: The QATSPY Golf Approach
Charles W. Boatright
Madison, MS
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