Valley Fordge Letter

Dear Dayna

I miss you so, I hope everything is going well for you back at home,and the family too. I myself is doing fine. I have not yet suffered from a could or a wound but my soul has dampemd from the on going of coldness and of longoing to go home to you.This ignorant war has lasted for far too long Valley Fordge is a miserable and lonely place for a soldier. There 's death and disease everywhere, half the soldiers don't even have shoes and have gotten frost bite. The water is horrible there is waste I the water we drink because there are no where else to go. There are twelve men to each tents which is about the only thing that gave off heat to stay warm at nights. Our food is running short and people are starting to starve to death before we leave. The conditions are only getting worse. We dint know even if the french are willing to help us out in this time and if not we are doomed to run some more from the British.
For the past year we have been running from the British loosing battle after battle. Times then were not as worse as are now, the weather was warmer and the supplies were not dwindled to nothing. The only thing that us troops going was that one win at Trenton, this victory gave us some hope that we just might not lose everything to the British, that we might have some chance. Then we started running again, for miles and miles we ran fighting then running again until we arrived here at valley Fordge taking a break the battles but the coldness and shortage of supplies are doing it toll on the soldiers.
The only thing that keeps me going and not giving up is too know that when this is done I'll be coming home to you and the family. As the war goes on though all i have is memories and letters from you but till the time comes when I walk through the door you will be always be in my mind. I've been sick of running though this so called General George Washington has done nothing but run, run, run and I'm getting tired of losing and ruining. the next time i run will be to run right to our House and into your arms. I used to think that serving in the war would be a good thing, to help out your country and such, but how are you helping when all you do is run its really just putting us to shame and I'm tired of it all. I hate this war now in the beginning it wasn't so bad but now i despise it all. I could care less what we do now i just want to go home to you and the family and get aways from all this disease, death and war. I have to go I need to eat and gather some things for later events. I'll write again soon


Hope to see you soon my love
love your husband Gerald J. Henderson