USS Oriskany; Another Brush With Death

Although my father has been gone now 9 years, this Fathers Day was a very special one. Dad was a Navy man. He served on the USS Oriskany. I remember he was on the ship when it came limping in after a fire on the hanger deck had claimed 45 lives and a chunk of the hull. That was Viet Nam. It took out the organ he used to pass away free time playing. I especially remember that because of my mothers state at the time. When she found out he was okay the world was lifted from where it squatted on her head. I was small then and didn't understand a lot but words like fire, death and war, were all part of my single syllable vocabulary.

After all these years, the Oriskany has been surfacing everywhere. Which is ironic seein's how it was scheduled to be sunk to serve as an artificial reef. The sinking has been postponed thankfully. I'm just not ready to see the ship go down.

I noticed it in an old movie, Mom found Oriskany postcards, my sister had lunch with a man that served on it in the 50's, I watched a special on the naval ghost ship yards and I ran across a few of dads old Navy things in my treasure drawer , formerly known as the junk drawer. I think everyone should rethink the whole junk drawer phenomenon. If the stuff you put in that drawer was just junk it would have landed in the kitchen can instead. Therefore those items are of greater value to the individual that was compelled to stash them in that aggravatingly unorganized safe haven for uncategorized treasures. Face it, hell hath no fury like the pack-rat that feels he's been violated.

I've been feeling an overwhelming urge to dig up what I can. I was going to say it all started when my mother emailed me a picture of me and little brother meeting Dad at the docks, but it didn't. It started before then. I've been rummaging for a while now. Looking for things, browsing histories and doing a lot of Sherlock Holmes-ing. That's nothing like Jone's-ing. I managed to find some long lost people, made some connections. I found out that there is a book out there about the fire in the hanger during the Viet Nam War and a video of the tragedy. I know my dad was on the ship, so my sister is anxious to purchase them and see if she can find a small glimpse of a man we both miss a great deal, still living and breathing, even if it's only on tape or in the memory of the writer. There are several websites and one dedicated to the Oriskany museum and the ships alumni. So if you or a family member served on the ship during any of the actions, please visit www.ussoriskany.com and make some connections of your own, after all, the ship won't be afloat forever. In fact they'll tell you when they plan on sinking her next. And they say cats have nine lives!
6/22/2005 2:21 AM
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