Thanks To A Nam Vet
Published by Wayne Jordan at Smashwords
Copyright 2010 Wayne Jordan
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You gave a big chunk of your life but no one even said “Thank you” when you returned. It’s terribly overdue, but, as a self-appointed committee of one, I say, “Thanks, hero.”
After all you’ve been through, I only hope this isn’t too little, too late. I’m not just talking about what you went through “over there," as if that wasn’t enough hell for several lifetimes. I’m also talking about what you went through when you came home.
Thanks, hero.
You are a hero. You laid your life on the line for what you -- for what we -- believe in. You resisted taking the chicken way out. You faced death rather than becoming another draft-dodging coward or flag-burning traitor. And finally, you came home.
Thanks, hero
Where was the hero’s welcome? We felt uncomfortable after what you went through for us, so we selfishly did the worst thing -- we ignored you. Oh sure, a few real morons openly maligned you, but you passed them off as the scum they were. But what about the rest of us? Where were we?
Thanks, hero
It’s not as if YOU lost the war. The clowns in Washington did that. They sent you on an undefined mission with both hands tied behind your back. You couldn’t even tell enemy from friend. Sometimes, you wondered if there even was a friend.
Thanks, hero.
And the war still isn’t over for you, even if the rest of us pretend that it is. Some of you are missing parts the rest of us take for granted. We’ll probably never know (or admit) all that Agent Orange has done to you. You saw and experienced atrocities no human should ever have to endure. It’s not something you “get over.” At best, it's something you survive through.
Thanks, hero.
Of course, some of your buddies didn’t survive. Some died in the jungle or never recovered from their wounds. Others made it back but couldn’t survive America. Some checked out physically, others mentally. And then there are the MIAs. You shudder as you wonder what they went through, or what some of them may still be going through, but most of us ignore them too. It’s too uncomfortable to contemplate.
Thanks, hero.
You’ll never fully recover from what you went through. What you went through FOR US. You’re a hero for just surviving.
Thanks, hero.
Then came amnesty for the cowards who ran instead of risking their lives as you did. Should they be punished the rest of their lives for their immature decision? Who knows -- but there was nothing fair about some of them getting warmer welcomes back than you did.
Thanks, hero.
Now U.S. companies are back to doing business in Viet Nam -- setting up offices with addresses of Ho Chi Minh City. It must make you wonder what you fought for -- what so many died for.
Thanks, hero.
How about Desert Storm? It was exciting to see the country rally behind those troops. But where was everyone when you needed encouragement? What a thrill to see their victorious return. You didn’t resent the celebrations and heroes’ welcome for them. They were heroes. They deserved it. BUT, where was yours? You are a hero too. And you gave more months and years and blood than those heroes. Sure, give them their due rejoice for them. But, where was yours? What a bittersweet time for you.
Thanks, hero.
What’s fair about promoting a draft-dodger to Commander-In-Chief? How do you face it? I don’t know. You probably don’t either. But you still go forward. Just like in Nam, you don’t have to understand it -- you just do it anyway.
Thanks, hero.
We wish no future generation would be asked to give themselves as you did. But history tells us that wish isn’t likely. At least we can learn to not give any future heroes the cold shoulder we gave you. And we can start by acknowledging you as the hero you are.
Thanks, hero.
How empty it must feel to then go through the years faced with the idea that it was all for nothing -- just a bad dream. But was it for nothing? If you wouldn’t have been there sapping all the strength of those intent on world expansion, how far could they have gotten? By toppling one impotent country at a time, they might have reached our doorstep by now. Maybe even have crossed the threshold. History reveals her secrets slowly. A dead tree can take years to fall. You can now take credit for the eventual collapse of tyrants that had poured out their entire strength in battling you. It wasn’t a waste after all.
Thanks, hero.
So this self-appointed committee of one, representing several million others around the world, finally says,
“Thank you, Hero.”
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