April 29 - May 18, 1945

In this series of letters, the topic of marriage is consistently covered. John expresses what marriage means to him and why it is such a special event that he will only ever do once. In March of 1945, John also found out that Irene joined the Marine Corps Women’s Reserve. It is not clear how long Irene had been in the Reserve before she told John. In April and May of 1945, John grew increasingly concerned with the process a marine goes through when their overseas service is done and that marine returns to the United States with time remaining on his service. In May of 1945, John finds out that when he returns home, he will only have one day of leave before having to report for transport to his station at Cherry Point, North Carolina. This new information causes John and Irene to fight as they will not be able to get married right away, and John refuses to get married on his one day leave because he does not want to get married and immediately leave his wife the very next day. In late May, John says that he will be back overseas by December, while also mentioning that he should be on the West Coast of the United Stated in August. In a letter dated June 10, 1945, John is breaking up with Irene and letting her go so that she can find a man that will give her everything she deserves. He ends the letter asking her not to write back to him. On the back of the envelope of the June 10 letter, there is writing that reads: “June 10, 1945, 2nd ‘Dear John’”. John and Irene continue to write as John admits he regrets sending her the June 10 letter and apologizes.