Learned my new neighbor is a Vietnam vet

[Mai72]

I lived in Thailand from 64 to 69 my brother who was older would drag me downtown where he would disappear...

The sex trade was big back then.

 

[marvdmartian]

I remember, back in junior high (or early on in high school), our history teacher was out sick for a couple days, and we had a substitute. First day, he got about 3 minutes into the lesson plan, paused, set it down, and said, "This stuff SUCKS! You guys wanna hear about Vietnam? That's historical, right?"

He spent the entire 2 days of class period talking about his experiences over there. Seeing as the US had exited the war (for the most part) just recently, it was an eye opener for many of us kids, who really didn't understand the implications of the war, and the draft, unless we had an older brother who had served.

Whenever I'm traveling, and see someone wearing their Vietnam Veteran hat, I try to take a moment to go over, introduce myself, and thank them for their service, plus welcome them home. Many of them appreciate that last part, since some of them never got that when they came back, like today's veterans serving overseas get. Being a fellow veteran helps to make them feel not so uncomfortable, as we share some similar experiences, just a generation apart from one another.

 

[CraKaJaX]

@marv

That's awesome. I'm sure if that ever happened today the substitute would be thrown in jail.

For some reason, hearing it directly from a person who experienced it does way more than watching a movie or reading a book about it. It's uncut, raw, true shit. It's very sad to hear what they had to go through, but incredible to say they made it out alive.

Thank you for your service!

 

[Chaotic42]

This thread reminds me of HappyPuppy

 

[OutHouse]

when i was around 10 or 11 i listened to my dad talk to my neighbor about his time as a Marine on Guadalcanal. then when i was older my dad got my uncle to open up about surviving Utah beach. those are two conversations i will never forget.