My grandfather served in World War II and he received a purple heart. My father served in Vietnam and he went on to the National Guard as a First Sergeant of a tank division.

Dad in Vietnam

I grew up listening to stories about my dad’s time in Vietnam. How he couldn’t stand The Beatles because Yellow Submarine  played over the speakers while he was on his way to war and how his life was threatened by another soldier. He’s talked about the weather, the people, and music the soldiers listened to when they had a chance. I’ve seen pictures of him and his platoon goofing around in old photos. But my dad didn’t go off to college or tour Europe after high school. He didn’t have a choice; he was drafted.  He didn’t bring back a scrapbook, or signed photo album. It wasn’t a vacation and it wasn’t just a character building experience. It was the Vietnam War.

When he did come back from Vietnam he wasn’t called a hero or offered the best jobs in town. He had to prove himself. He had to prove his sanity to potential employers. They wanted to know the details. Did the war make him crazy? Had he killed anyone? These were the interview questions he had to answer. The things he probably thought about on his way to and from the meetings, the questions that still might come up every now and then.

When I was little and my mom would tell me to wake dad up for dinner it was a tricky task. He would jump or jolt sometimes ready for a fight when I tried to wake him up if I didn’t do it right. I learned to wake him up slowly, sort of coax him out of sleep in case he was dreaming from some foreign place away from our suburban California apartment. Decades have changed this and he wakes up slow and steady these days but I remember wondering as kid why he was so jumpy just from waking up from a nap. So many veterans that came back from wars, so many that had to answer tough questions, relive moments and carry around unpleasant memories. They were the fortunate ones, they came back.

Here’s a video I found on YouTube the other night.

I am thankful for every veteran but I like to imagine what a wonderful era it will be when we don’t have to fight. I’m not sure what my dad thinks about this song. I might ask him today.

Click here for an Interactive Vietnam Veterans Memorial, leave a tribute, a story or photograph about any of the 58,256 veterans killed or missing in the Vietnam War.