Independence Day

Forty years have come and gone, though one year remains vivid and revives itself as the never-ending chapter of a Vietnam Veterans life. Forty years of remembrance containing visions of blood sweat and tears along with the smell of a jungle that penetrates the very souls of those who have fought amongst the odds of surviving our war.  The question remains as to when this war will cease and the demons of this war will be vanquished from our presence. We entered into the domain of the snake and Tiger full of youth and it seemed at that time we were immortal. Cocky kids from a land of peace who would soon find out what fear meant. A fear that would never go away. Not the fear of anxiety, but the fear that we would never be accepted. A fear that we would not be remembered, a fear that we would stand alone as the symbol of the shame of our country. Was our sacrifice worthy enough, was our blood red enough and were we unforgivable in the eyes of our nation and ourselves?  We carry the guilt of our fallen, we carry the memories of Khe sahn, Conthien,  Ia Drang Valley, the ridges, the mud, the rains,  the leech filled streams, fevers, jungles and friends since long passed, but timeless and ever present in our hearts. Smells unwillingly send us back to a time and place that we fought so hard to get out of. That of napalm, burnt flesh, burning villages, gunpowder, spent brass, death and formaldehyde. Sounds of choppers still demand our attention, as do loud noises and backfires. Crowds unsettle, and silence unnerves us to the point of distraction. We as old Vietnam Veterans are seeing our numbers dwindle and have seen the result of not being able to cope among some of our brothers by the taking of their own lives. We stand helpless while feeling their pain and we continue to carry it forth so they shall live, so long as we shall live. That my brothers and sisters is our chosen lot in this life. To remember and to preserve their honor, to hold one another up who have witnessed the sinister deeds of war. Freedom and liberty are ours and yet we are bound by invisible cords of loyalty and dedication to preserve the memories of our war and of our fallen heroes. These cords are but lifelines extending to the Wall, through the Wall and beyond the Wall, to one another. May our grip remain strong that we hold fast to our heritage and to our own.

Independence Day?

Not today,

Not for this lifetime.....

Boon....