A Moment in the Past Remembered

Gene and I stopped at a Krispy Kreme shop to enjoy a hot, fresh from the conveyor belt, glazed doughnut, and coffee.  The doughnuts seemingly just melt in your mouth, and their coffee was perfect.

This photo is the first one taken in quite some time in which Gene looks more like the person that we knew before the effects of his dementia started showing in his facial expressions.

Looking at him enjoying that doughnut brought a memory back to me:  Gene had just recently returned from his tour, of 13 months, in Vietnam.

We were in Florence one day in August of 1969, and decided to stop, upon seeing the hot doughnut sign shining, at the older store which is still located on Hwy 52 as it runs through the town.  

Gene ate almost the entire box of doughnuts that day before we finished the 45 minute ride back to our hometown.

I asked him if he remembered that day, and to my surprise, he did.  I fought to hold back tears. 
 Today was a good day.