Vietnam - What They Carried

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[SAMWolf]

The Things They Carried...

They carried P-38 can openers and heat tabs, watches and dog tags, insect repellent, gum, cigarettes, Zippo lighters, salt tablets, compress bandages, ponchos, Kool-Aid, two or three canteens of water, iodine tablets, sterno, LRRP- rations, and C-rations stuffed in socks.

They carried standard fatigues, jungle boots, bush hats, flak jackets and steel pots.

They carried the M-16 assault rifle. They carried trip flares and Claymore mines, M-60 machine guns, the M-70 grenade launcher, M-14's, CAR-15's, Stoners, Swedish K's, 66mm Laws, shotguns,45 caliber pistols, silencers, the sound of bullets, rockets, and choppers, and sometimes the sound of silence.

They carried C-4 plastic explosives, an assortment of hand grenades, PRC-25 radios, knives and machetes. Some carried napalm, CBU's and large bombs; some risked their lives to rescue others. Some escaped the fear, but dealt with the death and damage. Some made very hard decisions, and some just tried to survive. They carried malaria, dysentery, ringworms and leaches.

They carried the land itself as it hardened on their boots.

They carried stationery, pencils, and pictures of their loved ones - real and imagined. They carried love for people in the real world and love for one another.
And sometimes they disguised that love: "Don't Mean Nothin'!"

They carried Memories for the most part, they carried themselves with poise and a kind of dignity. Now and then, there were times when panic set in, and people squealed or wanted to, but couldn't; when they twitched and made moaning sounds and covered their heads and said "Dear God" and hugged the earth and fired their weapons blindly and cringed and begged for the noise to stop and went wild and made stupid promises to themselves and God and their parents, hoping not to die.

They carried the Traditions of the United States military, and memories and images of those who served before them.

They carried Grief, Terror, Longing and their Reputations.

They carried the soldier's greatest fear: The Embarrassment of Dishonor.

They crawled into tunnels, walked point, and advanced under fire, so as not to die of embarrassment.

They were afraid of dying, but too afraid to show it.

They carried the emotional baggage of men and women who might die at any moment.

They carried the weight of the world.



THEY CARRIED EACH OTHER

[SAMWolf]

Same here ladtx. I always tell my kids I have a can opener older than they are.

It's amazing how people at work look at you when you open a can at work with your key-ring.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks for the "carried each other" pictures, souris.

[SAMWolf]

Thank you for sharing the story about your wife's childhood.

It reminds me of stories my mother told me about hers.

Growing up in a war torn county is something we American's haven't seen since the Civil War. We really have no concept of what it's like.

[Fred Mertz]

Good post SAM. I've still got a P-38 on my keyring.

Make sure you don't try to take it on an airplane with you or it might get confiscated. A friend of mine had his Vietnam-era P-38 confiscated several months ago at an airport. I kid you not.

[facedown]

Good post SAM. I've still got a P-38 on my keyring.

Make sure you don't try to take it on an airplane with you or it might get confiscated. A friend of mine had his Vietnam-era P-38 confiscated several months ago at an airport. I kid you not.

A guard took mine when I reported to the courthouse for jury duty!

(She gave it back to me when I left the building, though.)

[Valin]

A friend of mine had his Vietnam-era P-38 confiscated several months ago at an airport. I kid you not.

Well you can't be too careful! He could have slit the aircraft in two with it. < /sarcasm>

[angkor]

Most South Vietnamese have similar memories about American soldiers. I've heard the stories.

I think it's unfortunate that in the dozens of American movies about Vietnam, the South Vietnamese are portrayed at best as nothing more than cardboard cutouts, as mere scenery. Worse than "forgottten," their story is completely nonexistant.

There were of course many instances of South Vietnamese dishonoring their own soil and nation, but those are hardly the only stories.

From 1965 to 1975 - and much more so thereafter - the South Vietnamese lived in a veritable horrorshow, a nightmare. I'm amazed that in 27 years no filmmaker has seen fit to tell that story. Maybe Tony Bui will do it someday.

[Valin]

My God, were we really that young?
It's rapidly becoming a long time ago.

[MistyCA]

Awesome, Sam. Truly Awesome.

[MistyCA]

Good morning, Spooky. This thread is so moving. It's stunning and gives us so much to think about. All these years later, to think that the burden of some of what they carried is still weighing them down. God bless our troops and please, give them the strength to move forward in life free of the heavy chains most of us will never know or understand fully.

[MistyCA]

oh, Souris. You really do give Sam a run for his money in the Scrounging department. These are very moving photos. Thanks.

[Soaring Feather]

Good Morning SAM

[MistyCA]

Yes, you are right. There are so many people around the world whose most comforting memory was of the American soldier who gently took their hand and led them to safety. Someone from Germany told me not long ago about the impact of her memory of the soldier who also put candy in her hand and protected her from harm. Your wife's memory is one I appreciate your having shared. Thank you.

[MistyCA]

Wow...thanks for sharing that.

[BRO68]

I've carried my P-38 on my key chain for 34 years. Most folks have no idea what it is.

[MistyCA]

I remember as a child opening up the ration packages that my dad and uncle had brought back from WW2, and my own children grew up with rations from Vietnam perched above the books in our study. I just sat with my husband a few months ago and opened up one of the duffle bags he carried home from Vietnam. It had not been touched for many years. It was quite an experience sitting there and watching him once again go through some of what he had carried. Most striking were the memories.

[Light Speed]

Great Post Sam

They carried memories...
Being one who researches lots..and is into all things visual...my impression concerning Vietnam..is that those who participated might find rest for their souls ...in this lifetime.

[windcliff]

ping

[MistyCA]

Wouldn't it be nice to think that the wounds of war that are carried in someone's soul will be settled in their own lifetime? I have my doubts. I see my uncle's struggle almost on a daily basis as he talks about WW2, the loss of friends, the dismemberment of people he knew and many others he didn't know, the cold that it doesn't take much effort to recall vividly, the wet, storming the beaches with no supplies because they were all lost in the destruction. Yes, at 83 I see the struggle to make peace with all of that. And I see the same struggle in those who went to Vietnam....all wanting to settle what lurks within their soul sometime within their own lifetime. Wouldn't that be nice.