This
Page Is About Patriotism And Honoring Of
The The Ones Served And Serving, Have Shown A
Strong ~ "The United States Of America" ~
American Women Past, Present And Future
Who
Have And Will Support Our
American
Veterans...
Dedication, Great Love And Honor
To Our
Country...
~~~WELCOME~~~
|
~~~~~~"Our
Women
Heroes"~~~~~~
And now the tears come, two and a half
decades later.
I ache for all we lost in
Vietnam - our buddies,
our relatives, our
innocence.
I'm no heroine. I joined the Army
Nurse
Corps to go to Europe; that's what
my
recruiter promised me.
I was 21 years old when I was ordered to Vietnam.
I
stayed 364 days. I cared for the sick, the
wounded
and the dying. I did the
best I could. I am only
coming
to know that now.
For almost 20 years, I never spoke
about that time,
or that place - I buried my
memories, my anger
and a large part of "me"
deep, so deep, just
wanting to forget; wanting to
feel peace.
|
~~~~~~"Serving
Proudly"~~~~~~
We'd tell each
other funny war stories, and we'd ~~~~~~"The
Wall"~~~~~~
And I, like many vets, knew it
wasn't over. We knew we ~~~~~~"Bottled
Up Memories"~~~~~~
Our first frontal maneuver came at
night - arm-in-arm, supporting
Even there, even then, we rarely spoke
about the war, not even to ~~~~~~
"Angels Of War"~~~~~~
I wore my current dress uniform with the rank of
Lieutenant Colonel, ~~~~~~"In
Memory"~~~~~~
No raggedy remnants of faded fatigues
or sun-bleached boonie My chest of ribbons saying loud and clear, "I'm
a vet, too.
I only spoke to Sue
because she was there too. Years
later in the
Army Reserves, once again in fatigues
and
combat boots out on field exercises, we'd
turn to
each other, never making the con-
nection
of physical circumstances.
laugh. Then
one of us would remember, and
share, and then
we'd cry. It would be
months or maybe a year
before
we'd repeat the scenario.
In 1982, the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial (The Wall) was placed in
our
nation's capital. I saw pictures of it and the vets
on
television or in magazines, and it brought
out
so many emotions in me that
they went way
beyond tears.
had to go there. We
didn't know why, we just knew
we had to go.
The Wall was calling us home.
It took me five years to answer. Sue
and I went together. At first,we
stayed far
away in the trees. "Tree - Vets," we're
called. Then
a picnic on the grass behind "The
Wall", where we
could see the visitors' heads moving along
as their walk took them deep into
the V of the black granite.
each other,
ready for retreat, we walked the length of
those
names, our tears camouflaged by the
night.
each other. And we never
wore anything or said anything
that
identified us as Vietnam veterans.
1992 was the 10th anniversary of the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Sue couldn't come, and I
did two things I'd never done
before - I went alone
and I went in uniform.
and all the insignia, medals and
decorations that tell a very
specific story to those
who know how to read it.
I could never have
anticipated what
happened to me there.
I wrote Sue that night:I carried you with me when I
went to The
Wall. I had the strength to be there,
but I didn't feel the
entitlement. I did put on a
brave front.
hats for me. I stood heads
above the crowd - proud
(at long last) in my Class
A's.
I was your nurse. Honor me. Reach out to
me.
Please, help me to heal."
|
~~~~~~"Our Gold Star
Mothers"~~~~~~
God, but it felt so good to cry the tears that
for so long They
came, the 40-something vets looking so much
older They hugged me and held me, and most
smiled through tears ~~~~~~"Remember Our
Disabled Veterans"~~~~~~
He was
mortified that he might cry. I hugged him
as his friend took our picture. He spoke
volumes in the simple words, "Thank you."
It was a strange deja vu. Remember
when the GIs would always take our pictures?
They still do. And all those eyes looking at us -
how we learned to look right in them and say,
"It's okay, you're gonna be just fine."
It's not so hard to see The Wall
now, to be near it, to feel its presence, to feel
their absence. We're going to be okay. It's time to
heal, my friend ... to know that you did everything
you could, and more; that it mattered that you
touched those lives.
~~~~~~"She Too
Was A Hero"~~~~~~
Next year we'll stand together when the
Women's Memorial is ~~~~~~"Never
Forgotten"~~~~~~
The
streets were lined with people applauding and
crying. A vet ~~~~~~"Our True
Heroes"~~~~~~
~~~~~~"WELCOME
HOME"~~~~~~
By Lt. Col. Janis A. Nark
Copyright 1997 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor
Hansen, Hanoch McCarty & Meladee McCarty
And they came. They were there for
you Sue. Oh, I wish
you could have been
there! You would have
been so touched; and it was
you who
deserved what I received.
we held, and covered with our
laughter,
and let the years bury so deep.
than their years. Some with the same
eyes
that we saw back then, the pain
still very
much with them.
as they tried to speak. They
want you to know that they
remember you were there
for them, and they're
grateful. You saved some of
them and cared
for them and for their
buddies.
They love you. For you
were their
nurse.
I saw him hesitate at the edge of
the crowd, then urged on by a friend the WWI vet
came forward. With crippled and deformed
hands, he stood as tall as his 86 years
allowed and saluted me. I smiled as my eyes
filled with tears and returned his salute.
dedicated, and we can
begin to forgive ourselves for our
imagined
slights and shortcomings and our human
frailties.
And we can begin the process of
healing ourselves and coming to
peace with
our memories.
I love you, my friend.
Veterans Day 1993, the Vietnam Veterans
Women's Memorial was
dedicated in Washington,
D.C. Thousands of women vets
attended, and we
were overwhelmed. We led the
parade- the
nurses, Red Cross workers,
entertainers,
women who worked
in supply, administration,
to
intelligence and
logistics.
sat high up on a tree branch yelling,
"Thank! Thank you!"
A man in a
flight suit stood at attention for over two
hours,
saluting as the women passed by.
People
handed us flowers and hugged us. One
GI
had a picture of his nurse that was
taken
July, 1964. He was
trying to find
her.
The women veterans find each other. We know, at last, that we
are not alone, that we are not
paranoid or crazy, but that we
have a lot of work to do in order to heal. We talk to each
other and find
comfort as well as pain in our words
and our tears.
Now after so many years, that the
process has
finally begun and we hold each
other close and say,
"Welcome
home."
from A 4th Course of Chicken Soup for the
Soul
October 20, 2000
Our support group mainly consists of family, friends & loved ones of a military member. There are a few of our members who are currently serving in the military or served a few years & also retired veterans.
We are here to offer support in a variety of ways to other family members and friends with a loved one in any branch of the United States Armed Services.
Being a member of a Military Support Group is fantastic, fulfilling and very informative. It can be a life line in times of worry and wondering about our child or loved one. Just having someone else that we can relate to is a lot of support emotionally. You will find a lot of answers here to many of the questions you have concerning your loved ones from other group members who have gone through the same wondering times that we all will experience at one time or another. Especially when their first leave is Boot Camp. At this time many parents worry as well as missing their children, wondering if they will be ok.
A support group is greatly needed and very helpful as we endure our sons and daughters first unknowing weeks away at basic training. We pray, laugh and cry together, share our fears and joys, as well as venting when we need to release our troubled minds. Our daily correspondence within the group isn't always military related. Information, stories, jokes, poems and sharing of all kind will be found here among the caring members of USDevilDogMoms. So please feel free to post any events, news about your loved one in the military, something you think others will benefit from or enjoy, to down right venting when you feel the need to.
This is a family oriented group, so please respect all members and do not post anything that might be offensive to others.
May God Bless & Watch Over All Of Our Military Members & Loved Ones Where Ever They May Be.
"Semper Fi",
E-MAIL
Home
This Page Was Last Updated On 11/01/2000
Since I have made this page 1 year ago,
my son joined the Marines Corps
and has just recently graduated from bootcamp.
His platoon won "Honor Platoon",
which was a "Real Honor" to them.
Especially since their group was told that they contained
all the "Degenerates" and were considered the
"Worst of the Worst" upon receiving.
If You Would Like To View His Webpage
Click Here
PLT. 3095 L-Co
MCRD San Diego
Hi, my name is Cheryl, aka USDevilDogMom
If you have a son, daughter or loved one in the military and are looking for support group, USDevilDogMoms is A Military Family's Support Group!!!
Cheryl
USDevilDogMom@aol.com
Click above to join USDevilDogMoms (USDDM)
"SEMPER FI"