The Foreign Service Journal, January 2009

agreed to conduct the special ritual for veterans’ family members in which sand from the Omaha landing beach is rubbed into the letters on the grave- stone, making them more visible, and taps is played. We had talked quite a bit during the two-hour drive but fell silent when we pulled into the ceme- tery parking lot. The caretaker came out to greet us and showed us through the immaculately kept cemetery. Yves and I hung back as Richard and DeEtta approached their father’s resting place among the thousands of fallen heroes. As the sound of taps drifted over the cemetery grounds, they knelt side by side, gently running their hands over the white marble cross. They were talking to their father for the first time. It was an incredibly moving scene. The long drive back was quiet, each of us thinking our own thoughts about the day, the sacrifice of the men in the cemetery, and the acts of kindness and respect shown to them by the local population. I think we were all hoping that the Iraq War would end soon, and French-American relations could get back to normal. More Surprises The ceremony in Bannelec took place the next day. As we all sat in the country house eating breakfast, Yves kept looking across the table at me, and I knew he had something more up his sleeve. Actually, he had several more things in store. First, he had requested and re- ceived an honor guard from the French military for the ceremony. Second, the lobbying I had done with the embassy had worked, and there would be a U.S. naval officer present. Third, thanks to Yves and the care- taker of the cemetery, that officer would present the American flag that was flying over the Brittany cemetery on the day of their visit to the Hens- leys. And last … well, that one re- quires a little background. Some years ago, Yves had visited a watchmaker’s shop in a neighboring town looking for items related to 50 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 9 Mr. Yves Carnot. The memorial erected by Yves Carnot at the site of the crash. Images from the Bannalec ceremony: Richard and DeEtta Hensley (center inset) discov- ered the father they never knew, Technical Sergeant Richard George Hensley (right inset).