A Night on the Mighty Mo

 

 

Everybody knows that Pearl Harbor was the start of the U.S. involvement in World War II, but do you know where the war ended? On deck of the infamous battleship, the U.S.S. Missouri secured its place in history as the site of Japan’s unconditional surrender to the Allied Forces on Sept. 2, 1945, ending World War II. So where is that Battleship today? Well, the story comes full circle, because the legendary ship now sits docked in Pearl Harbor and recently, along with twenty 5th graders from Miss Price's class, I spent the night on board the historic 'mighty mo!'

Our field trip took us out to the U.S.S. Arizona memorial, where we reflected on the fate of the battleship that was sunk to it's final resting place, tragically, below the sea. We toured the hangars on base and saw the original tower that first spotted those Japanese attack planes that fateful morning. Finally, that evening, we boarded the towering old ship, that is actually bigger than the Titanic, and we had a massive battleship all to ourselves for a night. We ate below deck in a cramped commissary, we explored the maze of chambers and narrow passages and the kids were astonished by the impressive 67 foot long guns, weighing 116 tons, that could fire shells 23 miles in under 50 seconds! That's like going from Laie to Kaneohe in under a minute! I was astounded how this steel citadel on the sea could house so many men in such cramp quarters! And that night, we experienced it first-hand as we slept like sardines crammed into tiny bunks stacked three levels high!

During our flag raising ceremony on deck, I couldn't help to think about all the men and women who lost their lives during those tragic attacks on Pearl Harbor. I reflected on my grandma who worked at Pearl Harbor and survived that fateful morning of Dec 7th, 1941 and went on to meet my grandpa who was stationed there. On board our grande ol vessel, at the break of day, I awoke early to watch the majestic morning sun rise over our battleship in the bay. It was an extraordinary experience to feel like I'd taken a step back in time! It was an unforgettable experience we had on board the Mighty Mo!