A Summer Sunday- Part I
Friends, you've waited long enough, and it's time to share the story of how Larry Mosser met Joy O'Neal. An ordinary meet-cute, in an ordinary way, in an ordinary small Kentucky town. But for these two, their families, me, and now all of you, it's a tale to cherish.
I've just started writing the book-version of all this (mostly non-fiction, with a bit of creative imagination where needed...) The basics of the story that follows were shared with me by Jonell Mosser, Larry & Joy's daughter. I've expanded on what she told me, trying to imagine more of the details of how that day might have looked and felt. Of course, as I learn more some of this may change, but this is how I like to imagine it for now.
Here's my telling of the day Joy & Larry met, in August of 1941, at a little church in Carrollton, Kentucky.
If you were a visitor to the local church congregation in Carrollton, Kentucky in 1941, you had a guaranteed invitation to lunch afterwards at the O’Neal Farm. That’s just how it was. Prentice O’Neal and his wife, Nellie Belle were stalwart in their hospitality, always offering a friendly welcome and a hot meal to visitors. Prentice would shake your hand so fiercely and bestow a smile so warm and insistent that you simply could not refuse. Over the years the O’Neals had welcomed many of the out-of-town relations of their church members, traveling salesmen, itinerant workers, or the occasional wanderer. Lately, there had been quite a few young soldiers to feed on Sundays, as some of the local servicemen were coming home on weekends and bringing their chums along. They came for the respite, the lazy country afternoons, the home-cooked food, and some of them came along with the clandestine hope of seeing one particular young girl…
"Red" (whose real name was Bob, though no one ever called him that), brought his friends Charles Summer and Larry Mosser to his hometown one hot, July weekend. They'd have likely made the over 20-hour drive from Montgomery, Alabama in one long shot, stopping only for gas. Their furloughs were short, and going home meant a lot of time on the road. But to three best friends, young and energetic, it was just part of the adventure.
These three attended church, along with Red's parents, and Red waited eagerly after the service for Mr. O' Neal to approach with his forgone lunch invite. Sure enough, Prentice approached the young men with a warm welcome, and strong insistence that they drive out to the farm for a good meal before heading back to their base. Red heartily accepted on their behalf, excited for both the meal, and the chance to spend time with the O'Neal's youngest daughter, Joy. Red was already smitten with this bright girl, and he'd keep on bringing friends home as often as he could to help ensure these invites continued!
Red, Charles, and Larry spent that afternoon with the O'Neals, and we can imagine how the conversations may have gone (I had a great time this week imagining and writing all that for the book!). Larry didn't spend any time alone with Joy on this day, but they surely conversed a little, and I believe a spark was already lit. As the day came to a close, Charles and Larry asked for Joy's permission to write to her, hoping to continue the acquaintance. She was so lively and charming, her friendship was sure to brighten up life back on the base.
A few weeks later, Red brought his friends back to town again. They visited with his family, Red's old friends from school, and made sure to pay another visit to the O'Neal farm. I have no record of this visit, but know that it occurred from a mention in Larry's letters. He had not written to her yet (although Charles had), but by this second visit, he was already seeing in Joy a heart and mind that set him dreaming of a future with her. Charles, too was falling for Joy, and while Charles and Larry were the best of friends, neither confided this to the other until after the third trip to Carrollton. Everyone knew of Red's crush on the girl, but she had made it politely clear that nothing was to be reciprocated there, and Red conceded defeat. In addition, Joy's father had made it abundantly clear (through a series of thinly veiled remarks), that none of these soldiers were to entertain any thoughts of his daughter outside of friendship. (Well, that ship had already sailed!)
Larry had no intention of disobeying Joy's father, but but the time of the third visit, he could contain himself no longer. His whole world was shifting, and Joy was becoming the center.
As summer turned to fall, the young soldiers again made the long drive north, with two suitors still in the ring, and still unaware of the depth of the others' feelings. Charles was now actively courting Joy; he had asked her to wear his high school class pin, and they'd been writing to each other. Larry's stomach tightened as he realized that to follow his heart was to hurt his friend, but to deny his heart would be torture. It was all Joy's decision of course, but he had to find a way to make his feelings known to her before anything else could happen between her & Charles. So far they had chatted and spent time together with her parents or the other fellows in attendance, but he'd never spoken to her privately. There had been glances, a few flushed cheeks, and the questions that not-yet lovers can ask each other with their eyes, but nothing was clear, nothing had been said out loud. Larry couldn't imagine that a girl like Joy could ever love him, he who had no real family or education to speak of, just a military boy from West Virginia, but he HAD to find out. Because he was already sure that that he was falling for her, despite their age difference, despite the geographical distance, despite the wartime to come. Larry worried, and searched out some moment to declare himself, more nervous than he'd ever been. But despite his worries, unbeknownst to Larry, Joy wasn't dreaming of Charles, she was already dreaming of him.
Before that third visit, Joy sat with the small pile of letters she'd received from Charles, reading them again. They had started out quotidien and friendly, and they'd quickly grown romantic over the past weeks. She had obediently shown her mother the first letter from Charles, as she was always expected to do in order for the correspondence to be be approved by her parents. Charles was sweet and polite, and her Mother & Father had approved a date to town on his last visit. There was nothing at all wrong with Charles, but... someone else was ever more on her mind. Larry Mosser had visited twice, and nothing at all had even happened between them... and yet, somehow something was happening between them. He was different, he exuded a depth she hadn't encountered in the other young men. He had an intensity and focus that both unnerved and excited her. She kept trying to find ways to talk more with him when he was there but it was hard with everyone else being there too. She barely knew Larry, and yet it was enough to pull her attention away from Charles, who so desperately wanted it too. Charles and Larry were the best of friends, and Joy wasn't sure how to handle this. Charles was truly a gentleman, and while she wasn't sure she shared his feelings, she hated to hurt him...
Gunter Field, Alabama
Tuesday, July 29th, 1941
Dear Miss O’Neal,
I’ll bet you thought none of us would keep our promise and write to you when we got back to Ala., but here is one who is going to keep his. And I hope you will keep your promise and write me in answer to this letter.
We got back to the field here about three o’clock Monday afternoon and we were really one tired bunch of fellows. We left Carrallton (is that the correct spelling) Ky at 9:30 Sunday morning and drove straight through, all night long, till we arrived here at the field. The only stops we made were for gas and oil, so you can imagine how all in we were. We all went straight to bed as soon as we were unloaded.
How was the picnic or whatever it was Sunday? I’m sorry we couldn’t have stayed over for it, but the Army must carry on! (Darn it!) I would like to have gotten to know you better, much better! But maybe I’ll be passing through there again, on my own time, and we can get better acquainted. Would you mind?
I’m sorry I don’t have a picture of myself to send you in this letter, but if you answer my letter, I’ll have one for my next letter. Will you send me a picture of you with your letter? Please? I’d like to have one very much.
This is kind of a hard letter to write because we don’t know each other and therefore, there isn’t a whole lot I can write about. (I ran out of ink here) However, I can tell you a little bit about myself so you’ll know something about me. I was born and raised in Wheeling, W, Va. and graduated from Wheeling Hogh School in 1940, I’m 20 years old. I smoke and I drink beer, but not excessively, and I like to have a good time. I love to dance, and I enjoy swimming, tennis, football, and hunting. You already know what I look like so I won’t try to tell you anything about that. SO there, you know a little bit about me anyway. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I have a 1941 Chevrolet car too. It’s blue, and it’s called a Club Coupe. Now , will you answer my letter and tell me something about yourself?
Well, I guess I had better close now because I have nothing more to write about until I get your letter, if you write. Tell me something about yourself (I said that once didn’t I?). Tell Maurice I said, “Hello” and write to me soon, will you? Bye now.
Yours
Corporal Charles W. Summers
p.s. Don’t forget that picture and if you write my address, again, is:
Corporal Charles W. Summers
72nd Material Squadron
Gunter Field,
Montgomery, Alabama
Gunter Field
August 24, 1941
Dear Joy:
Forgive me, please, for being so late in my answer to your letter but I have been home on furlough for the last two weeks and I didn’t get your letter until I returned last Thursday. Since then I have been pretty busy trying to get things straightened around again. My work has kind of piled up during the last two weeks and I’ve been working in the evenings trying to catch up with it. Today is really the first chance I’ve had to do what I want to do. I have about an hour before I have to leave to go in to church so I thought I could have time to write to you, so here I am.
Thank you very much for your picture. It’s really swell. The only thing, they, whoever took the picture, kind of missed a little bit. But, its’s a very good picture of you, really. I’m sorry I haven’t a picture of myself to send you but I’ll try and have one by the next time I write to you. I’ll try and have some of the car too so you can see what it looks like. I’m not very good at taking pictures though, so don’t expect too much.
Mitch and Red told me they were up to see you on their last trip to Dayton. They also agreed that the road up to your farm wasn’t the best in the world. I would have come up on this latest trip, but they wouldn’t have come back in time for me to leave on my furlough so I didn’t go. I left here Friday afternoon of the eighth and drove straight through to Wheeling. It tool twenty five hours of steady driving to get there and I was just about all in when I did get in. I went by the way of Atlanta, Ga., Asheville, N.C, Bristol, Va, and then on up to Wheeling. I came back by way of Lexington, Ky., Nashville, Tenn., Birmingham, Ala, and then Montgomery. It only took me twenty three and a half hours to come back. The roads were much better coming back.
Well Joy, I guess I had better be closing now and getting on in to Church. I’m very glad your Mother approved of my letter and I’m very glad you answered mine. I didn’t know whether you would or not. Write to me soon, please. I’ll be waiting for your letter. Good Bye for now.
Very Truly Yours,
Charlie
p.s. Please excuse mistakes and paper. I ran out of writing paper a good while back and just haven’t gotten around to getting any more yet.
Patterson Field, Ohio
September 23, 1941
Dearest Joy:
I guess you are surprised to hear from me but I felt as though I just had to write to you. I’ve been thinking of you constantly since I left you Sunday night.
We left Carrollton at about eight forty-five Monday morning and arrived here at Patterson Field about one o’clock that afternoon. I’m sorry I wasn’t at the road when your school bus came out but I had to stay and help service the trucks so we could get started.
I didn’t run out of gas but boy!, I came plenty close to it coming home from your place Sunday night. When we got gas the next morning, the little truck we used took nineteen and three quarters gallons of gas and the tank will only hold twenty gallons! So you know how close I came. When I got back to Riverside from your place, it was all closed up and I was locked out, so, Roy had a cabin outside and I went around and climbed in bed with him. He didn’t know what to think next morning.
Joy, I want to thank you again for one of the most wonderful afternoon and evenings I have ever spent. It was really swell. I think your Mother and Father are swell too and I hope they liked me as much as I liked them. Joy, did your Mother say anything about how early we got home Sunday night? I hope I lived up to the trust she put in me.
Joy, I’m awfully worried about how I’m going to get up to see you when we come back through. You see, all the big trucks will be loaded too heavy coming back to allow me to take one of those over those bridges back on your road. We’ll have about eight more tons on each of the trucks coming back and the bridges just won’t take a load like that I’m afraid. And so I’m afraid if I can’t get the little truck, I won’t be able to get up to see you. And Joy, I do want to see you, awfully much. We will be coming back through Carrollton Friday night and we will only be there the one night because we’ll leave Saturday morning again. Do you think your Mother will let you stay at your Aunt’s house down in Carrollton Friday afternoon and night? Or could some arrangements be made so that you could be in town Friday night? I’ve just got to see you again and I’m afraid something may happen that I won’t be able to get up to your place. Maybe your Mother and Father could come in to town with you and we could all go to a show or something. Will you ask them and try to make some arrangements to be in town Friday night? If you can, I’ll meet you in that same little restaurant where I first met you, at seven o’clock. If you’re not there, I’ll wait an hour and if you don’t come then, I’ll know that you weren’t able to be there and I’ll just have to trust to luck that I can find some way to get up to see you, and if I can’t get there, I guess I just will have to give up seeing you. I hope you can come through.
Well Joy, I guess if I write anymore, you’ll get tired of reading so I’ll close now. Tell your Mother and Father I said “hello” and I’ll hope to see you soon. Good bye for now.
Yours Very Sincerely,
Charles
From both Charles' and Larry's letters that come next, I know that they both visited Joy again within the next two weeks. Charles for the date he was trying so hard to arrange, and somehow during that weekend, Larry boldly found a way to speak to Joy alone. He said they had only five minutes, but those five minutes gave him reason to hope, and made him sure that Joy would be the only girl he'd ever want in his life.
On the drive back to Montgomery, Larry had a long talk with Charles, and then they both composed letters back to Joy- one in heartbreak, and the other in dreamland.
Stay tuned for Part II!
Leah
Those are some SERIOUSLY long drives! I can’t even imagine trying to date someone by only getting a letter every few weeks and a few minutes to visit after driving 24 hours each way. Yikes!