Vietnam War Interview Forum

Guest

Dave Wright

>When were you in the military?

11/68 - 11/69

>Where were you stationed?

Our base camp was in Lai Khe but we were out in the jungle or small fire bases most of the time.

>Were you drafted or did you volunteered?

I volunteered for the draft to get my obligation out of the way so I could get on with "normal" life.

>What part of the war did you attend in?

I was a Private in a combat infantry company.  Through a series of circumstances I ended up walking point about every third day for ten months.

>Did you gain any experience in the military?

Lots of experiences.  Most were totally different from anything at home and many were terrifying.

>What was your job in the military?

Walking point was rotated daily between the three platoons in our company.  Walking in front of the column it was my job to see any signs of the enemy and sometimes be the first to get into trouble.  

>Did you consider the Japanese as an enemy personally?

Wrong war - we were fighting the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese.  Most were just doing their job like we were.  I had the opportunity to kill a VC point man crossing in front of me but I let him go thinking "what goes around, comes around."  It could have been me if we were a minute earlier and crossing in front of them.

>Do you remember anything from bootcamp?

There was a lot of yelling from the Drill Sergeants and Officers.  We ran everywhere and I was exhausted most of the time.  There was eight weeks of basic and eight weeks of advanced infantry training.  Nothing could prepared me for the actual experiences of Vietnam.

>After the war did you return home?

Yes, I decided to bury all the memories and try to get back to life as it was before the war.  I married my fiance, finished college, got a good job, build a new home and went to chruch every Sunday.  


I felt hollow inside though and it took over thirty years before I could begin dealing with the impact the war had on my life.  I learned to shut down my emotions so I could focus completely on my immediate environment.  Emotions like feeling homesick, grief, anger and frustration were a distraction and I couldn't afford that.  I still can't identify positive emotions today.  

>What was your rank in the military?

Private (E2)through Staff Sergeant (E5).

>Do you go to any reunions?

Started to go to reunions less than ten years ago.  I afraid of reliving the loss of friends and terror of combat.

>What did you envision it would be like after you joined?

I saw the clips of he war every night during the evening news.  They taught us about war in basic and AIT, but I oculdn't feel what it would really be like to lose my entire squad on two seperate occations, watch five other point men become casualties, and see over 50% of our company end up in the hospital from a single ambuse.

I didn't expect to be changed by the war.  I denied it bothered me for thirty years but I flashed with anger easily, I couldn't sleep normally, I withdrew from "normal" people because it was impossible for them to understand what I'd gone through, what was important to me after surviving Vietnam had no importance back home and therefore a big part of me felt worthless.

I also didn't expect that all the terror and death in Vietnam and the self centeredness of the American Dream back home would end up driving me to a relationhsip with God like nothing else could have.  Now, I regret nothing, but it took a long time and a lot to pain to get to this point.  I hope you're not as bone headed as I was.  Life is a process, not an event.
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