I still have two letters I wrote, but happily never sent, from the A Shau Valley in 1971.

[11 Bravo]

I've never shared them with anyone, probably never will, and I'm sure there's nothing special about them ... just the standard "If you are reading this, I got greased" letters. This week's Newsweek made me go dig them up. God, those kids in Newsweek are me! Just as young, just as stupid, just as hopeful. My heart breaks for these young troops and the families they leave behind.

[Monkeyman]

1. Some where in the house is a bunch of letters from when I was in

No way would I want them printed

[11 Bravo]

7. Roger that.

When I re-read my letters I felt a curious mixture of shame, exhilaration and something else that I can't even put a name to.

[wicket]

2. K & R

:kick:

[lostnfound]

3. I think there's something very special about them. nt

[annabanana]

4. They may be the most honest missives on Earth. . . . .eom

[karlrschneider]

5. I never wrote letters like that, but I -received- some. There but for the grace of

"military intelligence"?? went I. To my everlasting shame, I managed to lose them whilst moving, and those words from my two dear friends, to me as I stayed behind never being ordered to that quagmire, are gone. But I do remember most of their ruminations. Now I'm getting old...they should be here doing that too.

[Morgana LaFey]

6. When I broke up with my first husband

the one who went to Vietnam, I got rid of his letters.

Years later, I sorta regretted having done that, because I realized they would probably have been of some interest to his (our) son.

Then, I happened across the book, "Dear America; Letters Home from Vietnam." I think I got the name right. There was also a PBS special or series based on it.

The book tore me up, and I thought it particularly cruel that the LAST chapter was the last letters of troops who didn't make it home. So many of them "knew." And in between the lines the sheer TERROR was palpable, from so many of those who made it home and so many of those who didn't.

Anyway, the good thing about the book was that I realized that for the most part I could hand it to my son and say, "Here -- this is what those letters were like. Substitute this place name for that, these buddy names for those. It's all the same."

I hope that doesn't sound trivializing of your post because I mean it just the opposite: you are absolutely correct. They ARE all the same, these war time experiences.

Sure as hell seems to me SOME day we would learn instead of setting it up so each generation gets their own experience.

[Toots]

8. Just think they burnt Tillman's

They burnt Tillman's diary which I am sure would have words about his thoughts if he were to die. "Support the troops" by silencing them..