The year was June 23rd, 1968. It was wet, mucky, and the air was filled with a thick sweat that seemed to never dissipate. We were in the middle of thick, green, tropical jungle in Saigon, Vietnam. Me and my friend Carlton were in a platoon of 6 other men. We were sitting there smoking our cigarettes and telling old stories of the good old days when were back in America. We were sitting on a hill looking down for any trouble and disturbances in the thick, green, leafy brush. Everyone was telling…
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signals, and it was the dog’s responsibility to warn the handler of what lies ahead. On the battlefield, the dogs were another soldier, but in their free time, they were man’s best friends. Although over 4000 war dogs fought along side man during the Vietnam war, only 200 dogs came home (Ravitz ). The rest of the dogs were either put to death or left behind. Jeffrey Bennet, president of the War Dog Memorial, wanted to commemorate and recognize heroes that were forgotten and left behind. Thus, the March…
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avoid their presence. I wanted them with me. I wanted to honor them and keep their memory alive. It wasn’t a burden, but my duty and honor that I freely accepted. With this responsibility, I didn’t forget my time in Vietnam either. Reading my first book When I Turned Nineteen: A Vietnam War Memoir you will have a better understanding of me, the young 19-year-old that returns home from an unpopular war and the influences, challenges, and decisions…
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happy to go home so I can take this uniform off. After I get home, I am planning on taking a shower, and eating real food. I liked looking at the moon in Vietnam because no matter where you are in the world the moons is always that size of your thumb. And spending time with my family. I said that I feel like we didn’t win the war because it Vietnam really going to change their way just for American? I don't think they will. I think we lose so many men for no reason, but I will always love this…
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As I trudged through the deep snowfall and the various dead soldiers' bodies, looking for supplies on the battlefield, the cold crisp air stung my nose like a thousand bees, I was lucky that the battlefield was deserted a few weeks ago by the enemy or else I would have been shot where I was standing. You see I have lived in this war torn town for weeks now and ‘the others’ as we call them, were ruthless when they came, they were like a tornado and wrecked our town to shreds. The only known free…
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My breathing was heavy and my heart was a drum beating at a fast rhythm. I could hardly continue going but I felt spirited. As my limbs ached I couldn't help but feel the beat in my heart and coursing through me, keeping me on the beat. As I opened my mouth to sing it felt like a desert. I continued to squeak out my notes. My adrenaline was pumping and as the rush was going through me as I trudged on. I swing my arms up at the end beat in a uniform way such as a soldier stepping into his position…
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A shriek of cry comes out, as I seek for breath to fill my lungs and give me the power to immerse myself into reality. I only thing I remember is her tears dropping like rain as she ran away from all the pain and rising river of blood; the blood shed by her family as they sought to escape from the jaws of the shark that they called home. The pain in her eyes stood out as she ran for her life while protecting her sister in her arms. Her sister scrunched up into a ball in her hands crying, seeking…
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sustain in battle, the fear of being raped if you were alone, and the constant struggle with the idea of even being there at all. After they served their time in Vietnam, the two women returned to the United States, and their separate lives. We ended our script with the two of them finding each other in 1984 at the unveiling of the Vietnam Memorial Wall. Neither one know that the other is there, but they meet again when their hands overlap as they touch the name of a soldier that died in their arms…
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The plan took me a whole year to get in full detail and by this time I was 70 years old, but I felt rejuvenated every time I worked on this benevolent plan. I handed out flyers and posted signs that said: “Important meeting for all rebels, a meeting to overthrow North Korea.” Whenever I walked through the town people bowed to me with respect, it felt as almost people had forgotten how I fought and broke a villagers arm or how I was American. The day came, the day of revival and demonstration…
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During the Vietnam War between the North Communist and South Republic, my father served in the Air Force Base in DaNang. Being in the military family, we had to move frequently. My parents felt it was not safe for all of us to stay at the military post when war escalated 1975. My parents decided that my mother would take us back home first, and he would meet up with us later. My mother asked my grandmother and aunts caring for us while she waited for my father in the city. Everyone seemed panic…
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