Veteran's Day is publicized, I see it on Facebook, all sorts of meme's and photos with little cute/well meaning/proud/ sayings about thanking a veteran.
Many of the Vietnam Veterans stay silent. My husband ignores the day. He recalls that he was not thanked.
His kind were called names and vilified because they served his country in an extremely unpopular conflict.
He wants no thanks and no recognition. He did a job he was told to do and that is all he has to say about it.
When people come up to him and thank him, sometimes he is not sure exactly how to act. Mostly he quietly says thank you and moves on almost as if he is embarrassed.
We talked about that when the new 'movement' came about. It was after 9/11 and suddenly after losing people on our own soil, soldiers became appreciated?
My husband went to serve. He came home. He tried to begin a new life as a civilian again and be normal.
I didn't know him until we met much later in life. I never knew the before Vietnam Rich. I just met the ...way after...
after counseling and hospitalizations Rich.
So I did what he would have liked to do on this day. Just had a quiet day.
The neighbor kids came down late yesterday and brought Rich a hand drawn card and some Snickers bars.
That made him smile from ear to ear.
And that was enough for him.
I understand. My husband was Vietnam Era but not in Vietnam, he was told to never go anyplace in uniform...not even to stop for milk on the way home...the protests and public were awful to soldiers back then.
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