My paternal grandfather was in WW2 and my Dad still has a Japanese sword he brought back. He was the one with the tattoo on his arm and the only one ever in my family to ever have one
I wish I had stories to tell about his experiences, but he never shared with me
He DID teach my brother how to roll his own cigarettes when he was 7.
After the war he worked as an engineer in the South Pacific then later for the TVA.
AFAIK, my maternal grandfather was never in the service.