letters home

[splummer]

My mother saved all of my letters while I was in the army. Today I just happened to re-read a few from basic training and my first 3 or 4 weeks in Vietnam. It kinda brought tears to my eyes. Not for me now but for that poor nieve 19 year old kid I was then. [I wrote that I hadn't started going in convoys yet but they had me sitting in a tower with an m-60 machine gun for the next 3-days.] That must have ben real comforting for my parants. Do any of you guys still have your letters home????

[covan]

My fater save all of the letters hom. I read them and remember all of the things that I did not tell them allowing them to think think everything was OK.

I am thinking that I should burn all of them very soon as they are not very accurate reflection of what I was really going through and if any one in the further would read them they would have a distrorted view of my reality.

I think that tomorrow will be the burning day.

[splummer]

I don't think you should burn them. Like me, maybe you didn't say all that was really going on but, I can remember what really happened as I read the letters. As an advisor you saw at lot more sh--t than me. Once I wrote my parants that we had been stuck in one place for a week because the road was closed. [It really was because the NVA cut the road and surronded the base area we were in.]

[Bill Farnie]

Yep I still have them and read them from time to time

[39mto39g]

My Mother saved all my letters.
When I was at Fort Benning before going to VN, I met a guy in a bar, Col. Hampton Rolen, we became friends. He sent my mother a door size map of VN. Every time we would move, (which was often) she would mark on her map where I was. Thats one of the reasons I can remember all the places I was, just look at the map and the date was next to it.
I never wrote about any of the fighting just that it was hot and wet and . I would send home a roll of film and she would get the pictures developed and the questions would come.
When I got home I had to explain each picture and she wrote on the back what I said.
The letters were to hard to read , but I did some.

Ron

[splummer]

Over the years when I read the letters I can feel Vietnam again. [Heat, mosquetos, rats, smell, dirt. thirst] I always feel sad but its been a good history of my time there. When we have our company reunions I'm able to remember or look up a lot of details that we other wise would have forgotton. [dates number of trucks people etc.]

[Robert Ryan]

My letters were destroyed by my ex wife. But I don't need letters to remind me of my three tours in Nam. I have plenty of memories and scars to remember it by. One scar I won't forget out all the 58,000 + names is PFC Gary R. Peterson (4th ID). The other is my brother in laws brother Artuhur Nedimier (wolf hounds 25th ID).

[DMZ-LT]

Got mine and the orginal envenlopes . Free in the upper right hand corner. I kept a mail bag on my track and would throw it on a resuppy chopper or medivac when they came in

[Boats]

Yep my Mom kept mine too but when she passed they all were tossed out. I'm gland in away. I was rather young and many things have changed since then. To re-read them wouldn't change the events. Better they are gone.

[covan]

Well . . . I did it. Took the letters and a bag of US and POW flags out to a friend's field and had a bonfire. Sat there alone with my demons for an hour or more drinking a couple of beers and stirring the ashes to make sure everything was properly destroyed.

Felt good. Was really therapeutic. No ghosts in the closet for the family to deal with after I am gone.