Dearest Parents:Please excuse my dictating these last w...

Dearest Parents:

Please excuse my dictating these last words to my friend. There is no longer time for me to write more to you.

There is nothing special that I can say, but I want you to know that I am in the best of health at this last moment. It is my great honour to have been selected for this duty. The first planes of my group are already in the air. These words are being written by my friend as he rests the paper on the fuselage of my plane. There are no feelings of remorse or sadness here. My outlook is unchanged. I will perform my duty calmly.

Words cannot express my gratitude to you. It is my hope that this last act of striking a blow at the enemy will serve to repay in small measure the wonderful things you have done for me....

... I shall be satisfied if my final effort serves as recompense for the heritage our ancestors bequeathed.

Lieutenant Nomoto Jun of the White Heron Special Attack Unit, a Kamikaze unit, during World War II