Veterans Lived History
I was talking to a client the other day about the reasons he started writing. This client has been with me for a couple of years. He is a Vietnam Veteran and struggled with re-living those memories through nightmares. He came to me having nightmares that were keeping him awake for years. His night terrors had gotten excessively worse as he aged. He has been recently writing stories about Vietnam, but most of his stories are about his life. Veterans fail to understand we are history; we have been a part of history. Even if you never deployed or went overseas, you have stories, some funny, some tragic. These stories need to be told.
People ask me when I talk about writing why it is so important? Writing holds the key to the past. Writing is very therapeutic. I have seen on numerous occasions where writing has helped someone with PTSD. Writing helps you get their feelings down on paper and get it out, so it does not stay bottled up. It also enables you to be in the here and now. You are focused on your story and not your PTSD symptoms. Nothing says you must write about your trauma. Your writing could be about history, fantasies, your family, or your experiences. Writing can be about anything. Because I love history, I choose to write stories about people and places.
Playing our part to help understand history and what life was like is crucial. I know multiple researchers who write history books solely using letters and stories from average veterans and everyday people. These books or full of details of what life was truly like years ago. Part of the issue that we're struggling with now is the lack of history in schools. No one wants to learn history anymore. Most of us don't realize the importance of history until we age and start looking back into our family's history, wondering where we came from. When you're a teenager, you really take elders for granted. That needs to change.
Those who study history for a living need our stories for their research. Writing down your stories will play a part in future research. When folks write books about life in the military, your story could be a part of theirs. Documentaries and books tell what life is like during our past wars. Those who are alive now can be a part of the stories told after we are long gone. What the different military bases were like, the living conditions, and even the food. Those who served in the Vietnam era served during a colossal shift in our military history. The military is a lot different now. It started to change direction after the Vietnam War. People need to hear how the Vietnam veterans were treated when they return home and the issues they dealt with while in theatre. Those who served in Europe during the cold war are not talked about. They kept the Russians out of Western Europe, keeping communism from spreading. This goes for everyone who has served in the military. Our lives as military folks will be critical to future research.
I would encourage every veteran to write down their stories. Not everything has to be about the trials and tribulations of war. The stories can be about the funny things you saw and did, the practical joke you pulled, and the stupid people you served with. You can talk about the different cultures coming together. Our stories can help inform those who research history on how things were. I believe it is vital for everyone to understand history. What's in the school history books are usually inaccurate and only tell one side of the story. It is crucial that we have a "Paul Harvey moment" and tell the “rest of the story.” Write your history down so you can be immortalized and appreciated by society and leave your mark in this great country.
For questions or comments, you can contact me at afterdutyvets@gmail.com or visit my website at www.afterdutyvets.com, and subscribe to my YouTube channel After Duty Vets or like us on Facebook at After Duty Vets.