Letter to Mother from Somewhere in France
Somewhere in France
7-6-17[sic]
6.30 P.M.
Dear Mother:–
I am sitting on the side of a big hill dense shade to the right and open fields to the left. I have my back against a big shade tree, I am about 1 ½ miles out of rest billets. The clover hay is ripe and cut and shocked here other hay is stacked in small stacks, we saw a funny sight yesterday about half a dozen wemen and kids one old man were threshing stacked wheat last years crop with a tread power thresher the only thing that wasent laughable was the horses side of it climbing up that steap platform they had two horses and changed them off.
Fred Barnes came over from his batt today to see use for a while he is out for a rest to he belongs to a pioneer batt.
I have been reading Romans 8 to day it is a very good chapter all thru. and there is lots to be studied out thru it.
The 5th verse just think if we would take time to think is this in occordance with the spirit of God in my heart, then the spirit will say what is right each time, so the thing we want to pray for is time to consider what spirit prompts use, Mother I don’t know how thankfull I would be to have you here beside me tonight for just long enough to draw you close to me and kiss you I would like to show the boys how I love and respect my dear mother who has worked and spent the best of her life for me when she should have been resting. What I can do here in how ever long the war last is small to what you have done for me for years, I realize more fully each day that the things we do in life worth while are the things that take willing sacrifice this brings such a satisfying joy to the heart. you would not worry if you could see me you would be content as I am which is entirely contented and wrapped in the service of God.
The scene from this place I am is certainly grand, there has been air craft in the air ever since I sat down but now I looked up and there is five 
not bigger than this and going to the right here 
is an other and a baloon 
the baloon looks like a baloney with ears on te. he.
I had a good swim to day the water was a little cold but it just tightened up your hide till it felt like cow hide and we are getting used to any thing I slept just as content and comfy as I ever did at home you can get used to any thing and then it an’t any hardship, te he. the other night or about break of day as we marched thru a nice city we were taking in every thing, and there was a furniture store big glass front and the fine beds well I thot of mine back at my shack and thot why I would be tickled to have a snooze under the store window on the pavement with out a blanket. Now if you would she me siting here laughing as I write this stuff you wouldent pity me in the least. I am only to tickled to think I am ruddy enough to never catch a cold or any thing but you can pity some of