Doolittle Raid-The testimony of friendship
Back to April 18, 1942, the sixteen medium bombers was flying to Japan preparing to launch a strike by the United States Army Air Forces. Just 132 days after the disastrous attack on Pearl Harbor. Thus, this action called the Doolittle Raid also known as the Tokyo Raid was serviced as retaliation. It was planned and led by Doolittle, who played an even bigger role in the war effort. That’s why the raid was named after his name. After the 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers dropped bombs on the Japanese homeland, the aircraft proceeded southwest off the southeastern coast of Japan and across the East China Sea toward eastern China, where several field in Zhe Jiang province were supposed to be ready to guide them in using homing beacons. For many reasons, they had to boil out over eastern China or crash-land along the Chinese coast. With the night falling, the pilots met a bigger challenge that they were divided into several areas and there was no one helped them. Just at this moment, the Chinese civilians came and help them…
To my deep impression. Zhao Xiaobao, who was then the 18-year-old bride of local fisherman Ma Liangshui, said: "My husband and I heard a thunderous noise a distance away on the foggy evening of April 18 and quickly fled into the mountains for shelter. We thought the bandits were coming." After several hours in the mountains, Ma plucked up enough courage to steal back home but he came upon someone with a torch at the village gate. Ma lay down on the ground and, in the faint light, saw some "big-nosed" foreigners. He sneaked out of the village again and asked other fishermen for help. When they returned, however, the foreigners had disappeared. "We searched every corner and, at last, found four of them huddled up in our pigsty," said Zhao. "They seemed to be very frightened." As the foreigners didn't show any signs of hostility, the fishermen went in to try to get them out. To their amazement, the foreigners threw coins at them. Williams said: "Of course, they (the fishermen) could not use the American coins, but it was to show our good intent."Showed the four coins, they were all helped.
The war always sweeps up everyone in hatred but also hold people together in times ofcrisis. As Chinese old saying: “Unity is strength.” A nation will never be beaten as long as they hold together. That’ why we could win the final victory in the Second World War with the help of people from all over the world. The profound friendship between the Chinese and the airmen in Doolittle Raid not only represents the affection between them but also the friendly relations between nations. The selfless Chinese civilians who aided the American flyers paid a terrible price for helping the Raiders.
What has gone was that painful time but which has remained us is the precious friendship between the Chinese people and American soldiers even if they had differences of race, languages or cultures. For those civilians who provided help in the raid, it might be the first time for them to get in touch with people from different countries. They even didn’t know what kind of language the airmen said, but still made the room for them.
In the last years, we have seen many associations were founded. Organized a series of events, we could have better understandings to this action and more people had a chance to know the story in it. The year of 2012 was the 70th anniversary of the Doolittle raid, when I knew that the civilian who provided help was invited to America to attend the commemorative activity, I was a little excited, and I could even imagine when two orders met, as all memories crowed in their mind, they just held with hands without words…In a ways, it is another measure to last this special and valuable friendship.
However,there are also lots of Chineseteenagers and American teenagers don’t know this history. I think all of us need remember what had happened in the past. In fact, we can know about the history through many ways, such as visiting museums, looking through magazines or watching movies. To know more details about the raid, I have dropped in on the older who was going through the wartime. What they said moved me a lot. Once I thinking of this, I tell myself that I should be satisfied with what I have and treasure the life at the moment. What’s more, giving others a hand when they are in trouble is so important not only for others but also for us.
These friendly relations should be passed from generation to generation. I hope that one day there are more people know this friendship.