Healing Wounds of War
My father served two extended tours in Vietnam as an American Soldier. His second tour he met and married my mother. After I was born in Vietnam, my father returned to the United States to give my mother and I time alone with my grandparents for he knew it may be a very long time before we would see them again, if ever. It was also much easier for him as a civilian to bring us to the United States versus still being enlisted in the service.
The whole time my father was gone people would ask if he was returning, that is except for my grandparents. My mother states that my grandparents genuinely never had any doubt about my father returning. That speaks volumes about him coming from an older generation Vietnamese, especially during war time. I know this is true because on one of my return trips to Vietnam, my aunts had said to me, “Make sure you marry a good man just like your father”. This is where my work on behalf of Vietnam Veterans began for me- my father.
Throughout the years my father would talk about Vietnam, but never from the heart of how he felt for having been there. I would feel periods of sadness from him as I had found in many Veterans on some level I’ve encountered throughout the years. I had pain in my life relating to Vietnam with experiences of others (including adults) telling me to go back to “my country”, and that I “didn’t belong here”. Many other things were said along with some physical aggression on a few occasions. I was just a kid and to have an adult treat you in this manner can make an impact on a young person’s spirit. There were no other Vietnamese, Amerasians, or children of Vietnam Veterans (that I was aware of) for me to connect with in regard to these things. Vietnam became a big negative to me, something I did not want to be associated with.
Over 20 some years after the war, I returned to Vietnam for the first time to reunite with my family and learn more about the place that left a heavy imprint on so many. I met people from all sides of the conflict and returning to Vietnam brought about healing in my life.
To all of the American Soldiers who served in Vietnam and family members who who lost loved ones-- By telling our stories and reaching out to others, we find healing ourselves. I have turned what was once a negative in my life into a positive.
Throughout the years I've had the privilege and honor of learning about the many other experiences connected to the Vietnam War Era. Our Stories are Powerful. They bring awareness, education, and help bridge the gap.
To all Americans-- You are known in Vietnam as “Nuoc My Nhan Hau,” which means “beautiful and generous people.” Your contributions and support of new relations and rebuilding of Vietnam is the continual testimony to American generosity.
We have helped the people of two countries that were formerly at war to come together and put the past behind them. We can now build new relations based on peace, cooperation, and reconciliation between our peoples. We have important new roles to play. Around 80% of Vietnamese today were born after the war.
There was a reporter who was stationed in Vietnam during the war. He said, “Although I searched for explanations, I never doubted the Vietnamese affability was sincere. [...] They genuinely liked the curious Americans who traded jokes with them and even asked them about the war.”
“I think that Americans and Vietnamese share an almost inexplicable bond.”
“It is a liaison woven in tragedy and common suffering, a tie strengthened by the flight of 100s of thousands of Vietnamese
to the U.S.”
“Perhaps as much as anything the bond is rooted in the realization that the war changed the U.S as it did Vietnam.”
- From Vietnam Now by David Lamb
Learn about our Annual Vietnam Veteran gatherings
The whole time my father was gone people would ask if he was returning, that is except for my grandparents. My mother states that my grandparents genuinely never had any doubt about my father returning. That speaks volumes about him coming from an older generation Vietnamese, especially during war time. I know this is true because on one of my return trips to Vietnam, my aunts had said to me, “Make sure you marry a good man just like your father”. This is where my work on behalf of Vietnam Veterans began for me- my father.
Throughout the years my father would talk about Vietnam, but never from the heart of how he felt for having been there. I would feel periods of sadness from him as I had found in many Veterans on some level I’ve encountered throughout the years. I had pain in my life relating to Vietnam with experiences of others (including adults) telling me to go back to “my country”, and that I “didn’t belong here”. Many other things were said along with some physical aggression on a few occasions. I was just a kid and to have an adult treat you in this manner can make an impact on a young person’s spirit. There were no other Vietnamese, Amerasians, or children of Vietnam Veterans (that I was aware of) for me to connect with in regard to these things. Vietnam became a big negative to me, something I did not want to be associated with.
Over 20 some years after the war, I returned to Vietnam for the first time to reunite with my family and learn more about the place that left a heavy imprint on so many. I met people from all sides of the conflict and returning to Vietnam brought about healing in my life.
To all of the American Soldiers who served in Vietnam and family members who who lost loved ones-- By telling our stories and reaching out to others, we find healing ourselves. I have turned what was once a negative in my life into a positive.
Throughout the years I've had the privilege and honor of learning about the many other experiences connected to the Vietnam War Era. Our Stories are Powerful. They bring awareness, education, and help bridge the gap.
To all Americans-- You are known in Vietnam as “Nuoc My Nhan Hau,” which means “beautiful and generous people.” Your contributions and support of new relations and rebuilding of Vietnam is the continual testimony to American generosity.
We have helped the people of two countries that were formerly at war to come together and put the past behind them. We can now build new relations based on peace, cooperation, and reconciliation between our peoples. We have important new roles to play. Around 80% of Vietnamese today were born after the war.
There was a reporter who was stationed in Vietnam during the war. He said, “Although I searched for explanations, I never doubted the Vietnamese affability was sincere. [...] They genuinely liked the curious Americans who traded jokes with them and even asked them about the war.”
“I think that Americans and Vietnamese share an almost inexplicable bond.”
“It is a liaison woven in tragedy and common suffering, a tie strengthened by the flight of 100s of thousands of Vietnamese
to the U.S.”
“Perhaps as much as anything the bond is rooted in the realization that the war changed the U.S as it did Vietnam.”
- From Vietnam Now by David Lamb
Learn about our Annual Vietnam Veteran gatherings
