As I was driving home from Indiana, I was listening to my iPod. I had it on shuffle, so each song that came on was a surprise.
It was raining and suddenly, "Travelin' Solider" by The Dixie Chicks came on. This is a song that gives me chills every time I hear it.
My dad is a Vietnam Veteran. When I have been in conversations with others regarding that war, I always say that I'm one of the lucky ones, my dad came home.
Back in Austin, Minnesota where my dad grew up, he and a friend of his would clean office's. One they cleaned was the draft office. The woman who worked there one day told him that, she couldn't say anything, but if she were him, she would enlist. My dad took her advice and enlisted. The day he was sworn in, he received his draft notice. He has said that the first thing it said was "greetings from your friends and neighbors".
Some may feel that this woman should have said nothing, however, either way, my dad served. As the mother of a son, I pray that Michael would be as fortunate.
As I listened to the song, I thought of my mom. The communication was not as it is today. There was no internet and you had to wait for mail. My parents had not been married long. My mom and I lived in a trailer in North Dakota when he was in Vietnam. She had no family close to help her. It was just us.
As with a lot of Vietnam Vets, my dad doesn't talk about it. I've heard two stories. One was about how he walked an hour or two to see Bob Hope. He said it rained the whole time he was walking. Bob Hope stepped out and the rain stopped. When it was over it again began to rain and he walked back in the rain. The second was regarding a long night working on air craft. He was in the Air Force and he said they were all so tired it was almost a group effort to put in a screw.
I asked "How Do You Thank A Stranger"? I would love so much to find the woman who, more than likely, would have been reprimanded for what she did. I would tell her thank you for speaking to my dad that day and giving him the chance to decided which armed service he wanted to serve. Who knows where he would have been placed.
I believe, by simply giving him the choice, my dad came home. He came home and I have a beautiful sister. He came home and walked me and my sister down the isle. He came home and plays with his grandchildren. He came home and has spent 41 years with my mom.
He came home.
