ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a document of singular significance in understanding Frank Coaldrake's mission of reconciliation to Japan. It is a letter, written in 1943 in Melbourne, from Frank Coaldrake to Maida Williams. He was thirty-one years of age at the time. Some of the details not relevant to Japan have been omitted here because of its length, sixteen pages of handwriting in all. The letter is dated 21 February 1943. It is introspective and personal, furnishing rare insights into Frank Coaldrake's thinking about himself, what he was doing and where he was going, or as he puts it “I have wanted to let you see something of what has brought me to this hour.” The letter takes the form of a commentary on a set of photographs describing his life and experiences to that time. Only one photograph survives, apparently sent later, and is included in the chapter.
