The bond of the American Veteran memory


By Jim Killebrew

[November 11, 2014]  After having watched a movie like the recently released "Fury" starring Brad Pitt, one gets a sense of the indescribable hardships experienced in the military during wars. That one was set in the context of WWII in Germany during a war that was beginning to wind down, but still facing an enemy that was looking toward a hopeless future where people would be starting out life again, but with nothing. The enemy was refusing to give up even in the face of certain loss. The sights, sounds, and experiences of war depicted in a carefully scripted movie provides a window into the horror of war from a vicarious perspective. But the real thing being experienced by those who are actually there, present with the carnage, seeing the death, living the frustrations, losing friends and managing the set-backs is a hundred times more imprinted into the brain than it is for those who simply watch a movie.

Having served in the military in any of the branches, or experiencing the life of a military person, whether on foreign fields or domestic assignments, the veteran has obtained a memory of those experiences and a relationship with comrades that runs deeper than normally forged friendships. That relationship is built on shared experiences and common memories. The intensity of those experiences sometimes result in a common knowledge of "knowing" the realities, but forcing the subconscious to repress those memories into silence. That can be seen by the number of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) cases among those veterans leaving the active duty.

Many families have experienced their loved one who has returned from a hazardous military assignment being reticent about their experiences "in country" or from special assignments. When trying to get the veteran to "open up" with information about his/her experiences they are reluctant to do so, and the questioner's response is met with silence, withdrawal, fear, and sometimes anger. In such times the veteran might have a flashback memory of the time his best buddy bled out in the veteran's arms, or the firefight they experienced that left many dead or wounded.

When a person decides to be part of the military in our modern times and reaches the inductee station to raise his or her hand to take the oath to protect the United States of America, that person begins the journey down the road of learning just what others before him experienced. Beginning with the rigorous training of Basic, to the highly technical schools where the most advanced weapons of war are taught and the skills of that training become the very DNA of that recruit. That person begins to turn into a highly-tuned, combat-ready bundle of "Esprit-de-Corps" that joins him/her into a group spirit that is not likely separated, even in the most difficult circumstances. That is the reason the military has developed practices of "no man left behind" and will move some to even give their own lives to save their "Brother-in-arms."

Those Brothers-in-arms begin to move as a unit together to achieve the purposes established by the higher command that include protection of a nation from harm and the continuation of the freedoms earned from past Brothers by the shedding of their blood. They have learned about honor and tradition; not just the words but the life-style of being there when needed and ready for the call. They are the ones who storm the beaches, fight in the jungles, stand on the line and keep the enemy at arm's length. They protect our shores, our resources and way of life; they are freedom-fighters that are always standing ready to turn back the enemy that seeks to destroy our way of life.

So this Veteran's Day sit down and think about all the American veteran has had to do to ensure the freedoms we enjoy. Think of those who are serving now, and those who have served anytime throughout their lives. Try to put yourself in their shoes and think about the experiences they have endured. Bow you head and say a little prayer for each of the veterans you know in your life. And if you are around a veteran who has been separated by enough time from his or her experiences and the present time, and is willing to share some experiences with you, let them do it. For sure, you will be hearing a history and recording a memory that is first hand, and deeply rooted in the American fabric. You will be much richer for the experience.

[By JIM KILLEBREW]