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October 15, 1944

Hooray, there were here again… this morning. They came at about 10 o’clock, after Mass. Of course, you know who I mean by “they”.

Japanese planes went up this time. People said there were many dogfights around Caloocan. Several civilians were killed.

I saw a heartbreaking sight. An American aviator bailed out. First, he looked like a toy dangling on a white umbrella. Then his figure became more distinct and people started shouting “Parachute, parachute!”. When he was just above the housetops, Japanese soldiers started firing at him. I even heard the rat-a-tat of machine guns. Made my blood boil, this slaughtering of a fellow that’s defenceless. Can’t conceive how the Japanese can interpret such an act as bravery.

No more raids this afternoon. The radio is announcing this results. All-clear has been sounded. A Japanese major –our neighbor– visited us this afternoon and there was a smile on his face. “We drove them off,” he boasted and “12 aircraft carriers were sunk”. I wonder if that’s true. Maybe there is something to it because not so many bombs were dropped and they didn’t come back anymore. I’m sure there was not much damage this time, as compared to the first raid. First of all, the Japanese were not caught by surprise. Secondly, they had enough time to spread their supplies and to even intercept. I didn’t feel the ground shaking like last time. And unlike the first raid, I actually saw many Japanese planes scouring the skies. I’ll listen to KGEI tomorrow to see what America has to say about this raid. Personally, I have a feeling they didn’t do so well. I hope I’m wrong.

Several of the boys that came to the house to play basketball believe this is the prelude to invasion. “The raids won’t stop anymore,” they say. One fellow said this was Halsey’s fleet on its way back to its base after the Formosa raid. Oh well, let’s wait and see….