Deven's sister found this photo in one of Deven's old photo albums and emailed it to me. My R took this photo of me when we were on the island of Oahu during the week of the 4th of July 1970. I flew to Oahu from San Francisco. He flew to Oahu from the war in Vietnam. It was a bittersweet week. My overflowing happiness at being with him in that moment was innocent of what he had already been through in Vietnam and of what was to unfold for both of us (all of us) in the years to come.
From "The Hours"
And...and I remember thinking to myself: "So this is the beginning of happiness..." "This is where it starts!" "And, of course, there'll always be more." Never occurred to me it wasn't the beginning, It was happiness. It was the moment...
11 comments:
oh we were all so innocent then. my husband's best friend wouldn't talk about his time in Viet Nam (my husband had a very high number in the lottery and Nixon ended the war before they got to his number). Ned never really recovered I don't think as so many did not. He died of an accidental overdose in his mid-20s.
Ned is a kindred spirit to my R. An elderly friend of mine told me that when her husband returned home after serving in the Army in World War II, he crawled into bed and stayed in the fetal position for days. My grandfather wouldn't talk about his time in France serving as a doctor in World War I. So many veterans of our current wars have returned and killed themselves in one way or another. The sorrow of war continues. A sign of hope for our local veterans is:
https://growingveterans.org/
What a sweet photo -- I can imagine you were a sight for very sore eyes.
Beautiful picture of you. Memories can be complicated. I think we all have some we rather not have rekindled but there is no way to eliminate bad from the good and from your story and the way you have shared it here, I believe that you hold on to some very special and precious moments - also when looking at this picture - which carry you through your life and that you are willing to expose the sad with the happy memories.
This is a gift.
How beautiful. And how we are here now, older and so changed.
Love that photo of you. It so captures that era of our time. War ends more lives than the bodies we count on the battlefields.
I love that picture. What a historic time it depicts.
This is so very poignant. And yet how present your memories are. A reminder that all we ever have is the moment. You look joyful in that photo. The moment was perfect and bittersweet and fleeting and forever. Thank you for allowing us to share in it.
I love the song and the quote. It's so true isn't it? It's not the beginning of happiness, it's just a moment of happiness and it will pass as do all things.
WW11 killed a part of my father, the kind, gentle part of him that allows others in, allows us to be vulnerable and trusting, War reminds me of cancer. There is nothing good about it, people die and people get hurt. It's ugly and serves no real purpose, even though we like to believe it does.
Thanks for that lovely photo and your reflections.
A poignant photo - and a great quote from The Hours. I've thought it or similar a lot recently - without having seen the film (which I now want to do!).
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