The Veteran in My Life: part two

        Uncle Charlie continues to tell of how he and his crew returned and found the Hideout completely empty, after closing Camp Evans.  No one was there and everything - classified map, radios, bunkers - everything was cleared out. Uncle Charlie found a note weighted down by a rock on a "crude table hewn from a log".   It read: " 'Mr. M.----, I hope you find this. These are your orders for you and your crew to report to your next unit.' " We stood in shock. Our unit had left Viet Nam and returned to the United States without letting us know. We felt rejected.
        I told the crew to go to their quarters and gather their belonging. All was still in place as we had left it eight days earlier. We loaded everything in the aircraft and headed for our next assignment.  I reported to the new unit for all of us. When I reported, the operations officer stated, "Sure, we can use another pilot." I replied, "Well, I brought my own copilot, crew chief and door gunner, too." He was surprised. "Anything else I need to know?" he asked. I responded in the affirmative, "Well, I brought my own Huey. Do you want it?" He was rather taken back at that.

        We settled into the new unit. About three weeks later, the unit administrator posted an order stating that anyone with less than ninety days remaining on his tour would be sent back to the United States.  I had ninety-two days to go. So I missed my chance to return to the US by two days. But three days later, while walking past the same office, a voice rang out, "Hey, aren't you M-----? Your name is on the list to go home." I informed him that I had missed it by two days.  But he enlightened me that the order had just been amended and redated by three days. It was still a ninety-day order, but now I had only eighty-nine days to go. I made the list by one day. I was going home! I only had two hours to get ready to catch a flight to Da Nang on a CH-47.

        My best memory was that 1 Thessalonians 5:18 never failed me. All eyes were now pressed to the small windows until we were out of sight of the mainland. How ironic that we wanted to get a last glimpse  . . . to remember the war . . . that we do desperately wanted to forget.
       The Viet Nam war was never officially declared. It was the war . . . that wasn't. For those of us who were there, the war that wasn't, still lives within us. Little do we realize how the war that wasn't, is firmly etched in our souls. In a since, the future is not ours.  It belongs to the war that wasn't.  The war that wasn't, has a mysterious effect on every decision we make. For those of us who participated, the war . . . that wasn't . . . now is.  We are Viet Nam veterans. What do others see when they look at us?

 

"It was a relatively easy task to identify those who were wounded in Viet Nam . . . .

their uniforms are adorned with Purple Hearts.

It is a relatively easy task to identify those who were POWs in Viet Nam . . . . 

their names are public record.

It is a relatively easy task to identify those who died in Viet Nam . . . .

their names are engrave on The Wall.

It is a relatively east task to identify those who are still missing in action . . . .

their loved ones still seek them.

These are the casualties of the war . . . that wasn't. But what of the ongoing casualties of the war . . . that now is?

          Yes, it is fairly easy to distinguish those casualties of the war that wasn't. But it is more difficult to determine the casualties of the war . . .that now is. For those of the war that wasn't, it was an external matter. But for those of the war that now is, it is internal. The war that wasn't, can be measured in months and weeks. But the war that is, cannot be measured. The casualties of the war that is, continue to be wounded and dying.

         Are you a present day casualty of this internal war that now is? Do you continue to be wounded and held prisoner by what you experienced over there? Is your happiness and joy short term?

But you do not have to be a POW to what you have experienced. God is the Author of lasting joy, and His ways are time-tested and true. The counterfeits of drugs and alcohol may offer systematic relief of anger, depression and low self-esteem. But lasting peace and joy can only be experienced through a relationship with Jesus Christ.

         It is futile to approach God on our terms. A basic principle of sin is attempting to run our own life instead of choosing God's way. Choosing our own way actually separates us from God and creates a barrier. Consider these verses from the of Romans in the Bible.

Romans 3:23, "All have sinner and fall short of the glory of God."
Romans 6:23, "The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 10:9, "If you confess with your month that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised   Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Romans 10:11, "Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed."
This verse promises that if you approach God on his terms, you will not be disappointed. You will discover true peace and joy.
Your mission in Viet Nam was to fight to preserve peace and liberty. You served your county well. You did your best in the war . . . that wasn't. But you have not completed the mission until you experience this peace yourself. Your duty is to complete the mission . . . and win . . . the war that is.

Thank you Veterans, for all the hard work you have endured on my behalf, I sincerely mean it!

Please Note: No part of these two posts is to be used in any way without permission from the author,

Viet Nam pictures included.