Had a WW II veteran for a neighbor growing up, the funniest wittiest guy you would ever meet, and a machinist that could fix or build virtually anything. My dad never had learned to weld or cut and didn't have a lathe, so we would regularly go over to have a repair made by this man.
I always enjoyed those trips, and the wit of this guy who could make a witty joke out of just about anything. One day while at his place, some stranger stopped over selling something I believe, I was just a small boy. The stranger started talking , trying to make a connection, and somehow brought up military service. He wanted to know what branch, division etc everyone had been in, I think there were a couple of other farmers over there at the time besides my dad. My father had broken an ankle and it had never healed right, and he was 4F for that reason...he remained quiet and the stanger finally left.
The WW II veteran machinist, who hadn't said much himself, made the comment after the guy had left that those that talk the most are the ones that have done the least. He never made a witty comment, never made a joke, just was very quiet for awhile.
Years later, I read in that man's obituary that he had won a bronze star in WW II on the fighting fields.
