The Experience Of A Lifetime English Literature Essay

My name is Frank Brown. I come from a small town out in the middle of Nebraska. I loved where I lived because I knew everyone and we are all friends. There were many fun things to do, we mostly went to the ponds and creeks to fish and also hunt. While we fish we usually cool off by swimming in the pond. I was a normal Nebraskan kid. I worked for my dad on his farm and I basically farm and hang out with friends during the summer.

I was only 19 years of age when I was drafted into the Vietnam War. It was a warm summer day in Nebraska when I got the letter. In the mail it stated that I was to report to boot camp at 9 P.M. the next Monday. I went and told my family that night at the dinner table. Everyone went quiet and was sad, my mom burst into tears. I didn’t care much; it was my duty to serve. I knew that my papa was proud of me. That night I remember I didn’t get much sleep, I was thinking about the war so much. I told my friends that I would be leaving the next Monday and we hung out the rest of the week and had a blast. We went fishing and swam in the pond almost every day till I had to leave. My dad was really missed me on his farm, especially when it came time to harvest. There was so much to do on the farm; I didn’t know how he could possibly keep up.

My dad took me to my location for boot camp. I got all of my training from there. I learned how to shoot the guns, use my equipment, and I got in condition. Boot camp teaches you discipline fast and also how to work as a unit. It was really hard stuff to do. I was just lucky that I was kind of in shape. I stayed there for seven weeks. That is where I made my best friend Tom Hutch. He was a tall, slender, muscular man. He had red hair and was from Nebraska too, so we had a lot in common. I didn’t know then but we would be sharing the hardest times of our life together.

After basic training my unit was sent to go fight in Vietnam. We took a plane to South Vietnam and then rode in a truck to the capital Siagon. That ride felt like forever. There were soldiers everywhere and it was really a sight. As we were with other soldiers they told us all kinds of stories. Stories of what the Vietcong were like. The Vietcong were the North Vietnamese fighters. We heard stories on how the would use gorilla warfare tactics(World) and set booby traps in the jungles and rice fields. I was pretty scared to go out there to be honest.

Our unit got called upon one day and we had to join the front line(The Press). Tom and I were part of the 53rd infantry and were told that we would be stationed three miles north of Siagon and that we were going to be defending a village called Rien. We had heard about this place before. You know the typical horror stories that we heard at home. You don’t quite know for sure what’s going on though until you experience it for hand. Unfortunately for us it was coming all to quickly. We were only 19 years old and we were going into battle on the front lines of the Vietnam War. As we arrived at our location we were commanded to secure the area and not let the enemies take over.

We went off threw the village and everyone looked the same. They wore bad clothes with their hair tied up or short hair with these hats that were wooden cones. They looked kind of silly. It was terrifying though, because we didn’t know who were the regular civilians and who were the Vietcong. One day as we were walking threw the village we were caught in the line of fire. We finally located the source of the gunshots and we killed the three that were shooting at us. I remember very clearly the guy that I shot. It was the first of many Vietcong members that I killed. We went in the building to make sure it was secure and it was weird. The Vietcong wore the same clothes as civilians. No one was injured in our unit, and luckily no civilians were shot and killed. I swear one of the men that we killed was the same man I had seen on a farm that I talked too. I then had a bad feeling about this place. That was the first reported attack in the village for a while, but I had a feeling that it wouldn’t be the last. I remember myself thinking then. If I make it out of this place alive, it will have to be on good faith and perseverance(Hauschild).

That next day I remember I got a letter from my mom(Buller). This is what it said.

Dear Frank,

We all miss you back here on the farm. I pray for you every night. For your safety and for you to return home to us as soon as possible. We are so proud of you and are thinking of you constantly. Your father could really use you on the farm too. We got a new cow and some chickens on the farm now since you left. I sometimes get lonely when everyone is gone here. That’s why I decided to write you this letter, to see how you were doing.

We got a new radio that we listen to non-stop. This new song “My Girl” is one that I really like. It is by a group called, “The Temptations.” I bet that this song will be a big hit. You would love it, I know you would. The Beatles are my favorite group though. Their songs are beautiful and catchy.(Flashback 1965)

Did you hear about what happened on the 21st. Winston Churchill died, there was a huge ceremony for him and it was very sad(Flashback 1965!). Did I tell you we got a television set too? That’s how we found out about because we were watching Peter Jennings on ABC’s nightly news. Your father watches it constantly now that we got it. He will come in from work and actually sit down and eat his supper in front of it. Technology is so great and unbelievable. How did anyone even think of how to make one of these machines?

I went to the city the other day and you wont believe what I saw. Milk was getting delivered to people by trucks or what they call milkmen. I just thought that that was the craziest thing I ever did see.(Boyd)

I heard on the radio the other day that Martin Luther King was arrested while protesting state regulations on voting. That is just crazy talk. Freedom of speech is an issue these days I guess.

Please write me back on how you are doing. I would very much appreciate it. I want to know all about your experience and what your doing. Have you made any friends? What do you do everyday? What do you eat? I want to know more about what your doing and how you are doing more importantly. Stay safe and use your great brain to your advantage son. Your father and me love and miss you a lot.

Son if you every get scared pray to God. Think about us and do what you need to do to be safe. Don’t do anything dumb or try to be a hero. God will protect you in everything you do. I am praying for you son.

Love,

Mom

That letter really hit me hard. I remember the way it made me feel. It made me feel warm inside and made me feel loved and great, which was exactly what I needed at that time. It gave me the urge to do what ever it took to end the war so that I could go back home to my family.

That night I wrote back.

Dear Family,

Don’t worry I am fine here. I am lucky enough to have a great leader in General Tucker Jr. He is a hardened veteran of war and seems to know everything, and most importantly keeps his troops out of danger which I know is hard to believe when your in a war but so far he has only lost 3 men that were serving under him and that is darn good if you ask me. I met Tom Hutch during training camp and we have been best friends since then(Hauschild). He is one of the most funny guys that I know, I think that he could probably make a cow laugh if he wanted to. Even though he isn’t the smartest guy around he is defiantly a guy that you can count on and I would rather have a guy that I can always count on to have my back when I’m in the middle of a battle than a smart kid that doesn’t care If I die or not. I think that he has already saved my life a couple of times and I know that if it came down to it I would take a bullet for him and he would take a bullet for me. It is nice to have a friend like that in your life and I think that this war would drag on forever if he wasn’t around to help me go though the day, and when we get out of this stinkin war we are going to have an everlasting friendship together. I am really getting sick and tired of eating MRE’s all the time they are not the best tasting meals(Buller)(Wieneke) in the world but at least it keeps me full. I long to come home to your good home cooking and have some of you home grown potatoes with chicken fried steak and gravy.

I can’t believe all of the new machines that are coming out these days. It is pretty incredible to think that you can be watching someone that is all the way across the country and still see them just as plain as if they were standing write in font of you. But I think that the fact that dad actually bought it amazes me the most. I figured he would never buy anything like that; I figured he would think that it would all be just a bunch or rubbish and wouldn’t ever buy a T.V. We are lucky enough to have a radio to listen to sometimes here and there, when we have stopped in a town or city. I love it and I think that it is almost as good as watching T.V mainly because I get to listen to sports as they are happening and not just read about the game in the paper the next morning. I was able to listen the new hit song(Reporters: Fairytails) that has been causing such a raucous “My Girl”. I don’t know if I like it yet but you know that old saying, you got to try it ten times before you like it, and I think that maybe I need to listen to it nine more times to actually tell whether or not I like it.

I hope dad is working to hard during harvest time because I know his back can’t stand to many 12 hour days in a row especially without me there to help. I hope are wheat harvest is really good because I heard that it is in high demand these days to help feed us over here. It would be nice to have a bumper crop this year and it sounds like you and dad are pretty cure hat are crop is going to be good, especially when you are buying TVs I heard that they are pretty scarce and that it is pretty rare for someone to have one. I guess with me not there eating all your food all the time you have extra money to buy nice things like that.

Well I think that it is time for me to wrap things up because the general is calling me. I think that I have to be a look out tonight to make sure no Vietcong attack are base without me getting them first. I love and miss you to very much and I hope that I will be seeing you soon and this stupid war will be over.

Love your son,

Frank Brown

That night while I was standing guard we were ambushed by the Vietcong and I was almost hit in the leg but luckily it missed by a little bit otherwise I think that it could have been the end of me. There was bullets fling everywhere it seemed like there were thousands of them everywhere and I thought for sure that I was going to die but luckily for me I was able to make it back into camp and found cover where the rest of the company was. From there General Tucker did his thing and we got out of there with a few minor injuries to some of the men in are company. I’m glad that I am not a general because I don’t think we would have made it out alive if I was leading are company and I know for sure I would not have been as calm and collected as general Tucker was that night. If there is anything that I will remember most about him is that even when we don’t know where the enemy is and getting fired at from all directions he would keep calm which would keep us calm and help us make the proper decisions that are need to be made when in the heat of battle. I think that night I learned more about what we were up against than I had learned in the first few encounters with the Vietcong. Even though we had to retreat back that night I wasn’t so ashamed when I found out later on it would be known as the Tet Offensive(The Tet Offensive). Which was one of the biggest attacks on the U.S so far.

From there they took over the Hanoi Hilton which was a hotel in North Vietnam where they held hostage many of are allied soldiers and committed many horrific and torturous acts of violence like hanging people from the rafters by only there arms and leaving them to hang there for days. The Hanoi Hilton wasn’t the only bad thing about the war. There were times where we had to sleep with the mosquitoes swarming everywhere and even with rats.

The Tet Offensive wasn’t the only major thing that happened to me during the war. I was apart of the My Lai Massacre( Nation:My LAI: An American Tragedy)which is something that I am not proud of but something that I had to be a part of. We killed many civilians because we were told that everyone in the village was a threat and to take out as many as we could otherwise are own lives would be in danger.

When walking to the villages through the forest we had to have the people of different villages lead( Letters) us because the Vietcong would set up traps in the woods that would cause you to die a painful death. So when someone would lead us they would lead us through the right path in the woods so that we wouldn’t get hurt or killed(Buller). We have heard of many stories of this happening, so getting a powerful civilian to lead us was our best bet to stay alive.

The Vietcong were very skillful and scary. They would use guerrilla warfare where they would hit us and run fast(Jensen). That made it very hard for us because we couldn’t call in for bombings since they would be on top of us too. We had total air control but we could only bomb on missions to the north. We couldn’t really use it for our fighting close hand. We did have the planes drop Agent Orange(Environment: The Agent Orange Affair), which was a pesticide that would kill the plants to out tree and other plant cover. There would be no more leaves on the trees when we used that. We also used weather control if you believe that. We had planes drop particles of ice or something in the clouds and it would make it rain. Now that is science.

My mom sent me another letter that I still remember, it said.

Dear Frank,

I am glad that you are okay. It has been lonely months without you. Your dad had to hire help for harvest time and it is just not the same without you. I hope you come home soon. How close do you think you are to ending this war? Shouldn’t those communist’s be about beaten over there. They should see that democracy, like in the U.S, is what needs to be put in their system. It would solve a lot of problems.

Prices are okay. The cost of a bushel of corn is about 1.2 dollars(Boyd). Statistics say though that the average yearly income is about 5,942 dollars(Boyd). We are thinking about getting you a new Chevy Impala when you come home. They go for around 3 thousand these days, but you are worth it. We have been putting money away for a while. These stamps cost .05 cents so that’s why I put some in here(Documentaries). I want to keep hearing back from you.

Holidays are not the same with you gone. This Halloween I made a jack-o-lantern of your face. It made me cry though. The family really misses you and sends words of love. They are all praying for you they have told me to tell you, and they also love you very much.

I have some more favorites in the music department though. The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and last but not least, Elvis. They are the best singers theses days and you have to listen to them and tell me what you think. I bet you will love them the first time you hear their songs.

The other day I saw people protesting the war(Griffiths). It was bad they were disrespecting soldiers and all of this stuff. They were disrespectful and it made me so mad. You are over there fighting for freedom and they’re over here at home complaining. It makes me so mad. Sorry.

Son when you get back home I will cook you nice food for a month. Chicken fried steak with gravy and potatoes one day, a nice juicy steak the next day, and what ever you want really. So come home soon, please.

I miss you so very much these days I have started to get addicted to watching TV and listening to the radio. It is quite sad if you think about it, but it’s one of the only things I can do to get my mind off the war and the dangers that you are in. It helps me to pray to God for your safety,(American Marine) and you should be doing that too. I cannot wait to see your beautiful face again son, hope to hear from you soon son. Your dad and I love you very much.

Love,

Mom

I remember that letter so vividly because it was when we were getting close to capturing the North Vietnam capital. I couldn’t wait to respond to my momma that time because of the good news I had for her. This is what I wrote.

Dear mom and dad,

Thank you for all of your concern and your love and support. I am sure this war is almost over and will be ended. I felt like I have been here for ever and sometimes I forget what you guys look like. It helps though to think of a good memory and everything comes back.

Mom, I did listen to all of those people that you like and you are right. They are good and it’s music to my ears. When I get home I am going to dance with you to the music of your radio. It will be a grand time. It makes me smile just thinking about all of that fun(Hearts and Minds).

I have fun at night’s playing cards and telling stories with my friends here, it helps me pass time and have fun doing it. My friend that I told you about is a really good poker player. Its crazy. Don’t worry mom, I pray every day for my safety, other soldiers safety, and even your safety. I know that the big man up there is taking care of me.

I think I will be home in a matter of months mom, so don’t go causing too much trouble. I love you guys.

Love,

Frank(Letters)

I had killed hundreds of men in Vietnam and it is mentally brutal. I don’t like to talk about the accounts and detail about it all(Buller). It’s too hard for me to tell you guys. It is hard to take in, a 19 year old man should not see this kind of violence, nobody should. Someone had to do it though. Freedom is what the United States is about and that is why I fought for it. It’s very hard to handle though. There are many accounts of soldiers committing suicide and going mentally insane because of the war and the accounts that we had. It’s a symptom that can’t be cured, I have herd(Jensen). I guess I am lucky that my faith and determination led me to be all right at the end of it. I don’t like to talk about it at all but I can still deal with it okay.

Not to long the war finally ended and I was sent back home. I had been in war what had seemed like forever and it was finally over. When I stepped off of the plane not everyone was happy. There were protesters trashing us and not supporting all that we did. That really pissed me off. Then I saw my family and I was overflowed with happiness. My parents come over and hugged me and we all cried of joy. I hardly recognized my family though. My father looked fatter and both of them looked older. They told me I looked a lot older too though.

I remember that day I met my friend Tom’s family too. They were nice people and gave me a hug and said to me, “God bless you son.” I was a great day then. I went home to my family and I ate well for a month or two. Real well eating to be exact.

There was a memorial(Nation) put out for all of the Vietnam vet’s that had died in the war. Tom and I took a trip up there the year after it was put up and put down gifts at the wall for our fellow soldiers who didn’t make it(Moe). It was very emotional.

As for Tom, and me we are best friends that live by each other, we both farm and have been best friends ever since. The war was a very hard time for us, but we came out alive and well. We thank God every day for the wonderful days and live our great free lives to the fullest.

20 years later out unit had a reunion. We all caught up on life, told stories, laughed and cried at times. It was a great time and I had a blast talking with my friends. We played poker and I tell you what. Tom still had it, wiped us all out. It was crazy and fun. I can’t wait till our next reunion.