April 22nd, 1945

Dear Mom and Dad,

I suppose you have been wondering what has happened to me and why I have not written to you for so long. Well, I often wonder lately myself what has happened, but I have had to force myself to Do it lately and this past 3 weeks, I haven't even been able to ‘face myself' to write to anyone. I am so far behind in my correspondence now that I don't suppose I ever will catch up... and you both must be wondering how I am and are probably very anxious. Well, I'm OK. We have not been doing very much this month in fact; it is beginning to become very wearisome hanging around waiting for a target. We have only done five trips this month and now it is nearly over, so I don't suppose we can finish this month as we had hoped. However, we have only 8 more to do and then our ‘first tour' is behind us. After that, I don't know what we are going to do. I had hoped to be able to go home, but they may make me an instructor instead: and that is a job I should hate wholeheartedly! I had hoped to be able to go home and start my University training, but now I don't know: I'm afraid we will have to put that off for awhile. I have nearly made up my mind to apply for my course at University of Toronto. It has many advantages over UBC. which I needn't enumerate because you can probably see them yourselves, but there is one other advantage that you probably won't think about. I have lived all my life in the West and I think it is about time I began to learn something about how the East thinks and feels, so perhaps I will be able to understand what the difference is and why it exists. Because there is a difference and I - for one, don't think it is good. And it isn't as if I were going to a strange city for I have both friends and relatives there: which I haven't in Vancouver... only thing is that I will be farther from home. However, I guess I wouldn't be home very much if I were at UBC. either so that doesn't really matter. I could have my summer holidays at home. I don't know, I haven't quite made up my mind yet, I'm just thinking about it. I have bought $300 worth of war-bonds this time because I am making so much extra money now. By the way, I am a WO2 now and my pay is $4.60 a day - $138.00 a month, so I guess I can save $75.00 out of that and still have quite a bit to play around with. By the way, I sold my ring for 15/s, so you can scratch that off my assets. Did you ever get those War Bonds I have been buying recently? They should be through any day now. How do you stand financially...good or bad? I haven't heard from Stan recently so I don't know how he is doing. I don't expect he will see much more action now for so far as I can see, we are nearly thru: over here at least. I am anyway. I can hardly see myself finishing my tour over here. But I may. Must now close.
Love as ever,

Jim