Two Surprises at Midnight

One day in November, 1945, I was walking in the Russian section of Shanghai. The urge to visit a bathroom became a near necessity and the nearest place to me was a White Russian establishment called the Midnight Cafe. Not wishing to be a non paying visitor to their sanitary facilities, I ordered a vodka and asked where the men's room was. It was pointed out to me and I headed there without delay.

Shanghai street scene, 1945. ENLARGE IMAGE

Taking care of my human needs, I glanced around as the door opened. Much to my surprise, a woman came in and occupied one of the doorless stalls. A few seconds later another woman came in and occupied the other stall. I quickly completed what I had come for and left the room thinking that I had inadvertantly entered the Ladies Room. Upon questioning this, the bartender assured me that I had gone to the one and only restroom and it was open to both men and women. He noted that very few places he knew ever went to the expense of two separate rooms in as much as none of their customers really cared. It was certainly a big surprise to an American.

I sat down at the bar to finish my vodka when a hand pattted my back. I looked around and big surprise Number 2 greeted me in the smiling face of another American Pilot, Wallace H. Little, who graduated with me in the Class of 42 at Boonton High School. He was the first and only face from home that I would encounter overseas. Wally was a Fighter Pilot flying P51's out of Indo-China. In our mutual surprise at seeing each other, I never did find out why he was in Shanghai. I told him that I had been flying the Hump with Combat Cargo and had been transferred with Troop Carrier to Kiangwan Airbase.

We chatted on for the better part of an hour when he had to leave. Since the war, I have seen Wally several times at class reunions, the latest being our 60th. He went on to become a minister and missionary. Whenever I hear "It's a Small World", I whisper "amen" in my mind.