Traveling Vietnam Veteran Wall Spends Labor Day Weekend in Ludington

I must personally admit to not being very connected with the Vietnam War.  I was born about the time it started, was nothing more than a kid when it finished, and was completely in the dark whenever stories about it came on the nightly news, back in an era when we only had three networks on the TV-- if you actually could receive all of them. 

 

My older brothers had much the same problem, while my father had served with distinction and honor in World War Two, fighting Germany on the Western Front as a paratrooper.  Although my father received several significant medals in combat, he rarely has commented on the experiences other than in writing his memoirs.  His view on the Vietnam War seemed to be ambivalent at best, but as he has matured in age he has expressed reticence in sending our troops to foreign lands without any good reasons as has been done sometimes in recent years. 

 

As he fought in the big war and retired from the US Army not too long after, his six siblings and their children also fell on one side or the other of the war based on their age.  Similarly, my mother's side of the family and their kids were non-participants in the Vietnam War even though some had military experience prior to the war.  So effectively, my family and their acquaintances were sheltered from being affected by the Vietnam War, and of course, as a boy I had nobody I knew of directly affected by this conflict. 

 

So when I learned of the Wall's appearance in Ludington, I expected to take a look at the monument more out of curiosity than of necessity.  One who has experienced the death of someone close should be able to relate with becoming emotionally moved by seeing the name of their loved one on polished stone in a cemetery.  One should then be able to empathize with individuals seeing their long lost friend or relative placed amongst other of the people who also were never to make it back. 

 

As I would find out, the wall is segmented into casualties claimed during periods of the war, so there is a good chance you may see other soldier's names that died in the same military maneuver right next to their comrades in arms.  You can also decipher the tides of the war by noticing dates where casualty counts were high, and when they were low.

 

Otherwise, it brings to mind a gigantic tombstone with thousands of interred souls therein, with the megalith tapering on both sides to maintain its finiteness.  Each of the fallen have their names on it, a very simple concept, but perhaps a most profound way to remember each one individually-- and as part of a greater group of American's that never made it back from a remote corner of Asia.

 

So even without knowing anybody listed on the Wall, even in the second degree of separation, it is hard to not be moved by the monument that faced south on the north side of City Park this weekend.  And amazed that at any time, four of these travelling walls are going across the country to remember those who fought in this unpopular war.

 

More personally, the exhibit had other walls that showed the fallen heroes of other conflicts since Vietnam and some facts of the wars before, including World War 2 and Korea.  Personally, the tribute to the military who have fallen in the 'War on Terror' consisting of boards where thousands of bronzed dog tags of individuals was meaningful to me, particularly since the last board was only less than half full, and undoubtedly would be updated to include more while peregrinating with the Wall.  I've known two upstanding young men who have fought in that theatre and had the luck to survive.

 

 

Both the Wall and the dog tags give a sense of the immense number of casualties that have died, and makes one wonder about what potential these soldiers had if they were not cut down in their prime of life.  It can tug at the very soul of both dove and hawk.  Hope you were able to make it in to view it while it was here.

(Top two photos courtesy of Shoreline Media)

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I also took a few photos of the wall. It was early and raining so not many people were there.

Thanks, Willy. 

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