Memorial Day, Veterans Park, Lynnwood, Washington

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

"And in the end, of course, a true war story is never about war. It's about sunlight. It's about the special way that dawn spreads out on a river when you know you must cross the river and march into the mountains and do things you are afraid to do. It's about love and memory. It's about sorrow. It's about sisters who never write back and people who never listen."
-Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried

This is the final post for the May 2010 Big Read. Inspired by Tim O'Brien's powerful novel The Things They Carried, over the past month community members and staff of the Everett Public Library and Sno-Isle Libraries shared their memories of the Vietnam era. We have done so in book discussions, lectures, movies, conversations among ourselves, and in this blog. We've talked about music, food, first kisses and neighborhood street games. We told our stories about our brothers, husbands, fathers and grandfathers who fought in Vietnam; sometimes they told their own stories.

Yesterday, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1040 gathered together in Veterans Park, Lynnwood, to remember and to honor all military personnel who gave their lives in service to their country. Later in the afternoon, many of these veterans came to Lynnwood Library to share their experiences and thoughts. Most had served in the Vietnam era and some had served in Vietnam. Although painful at times, they shared with us and treated questions and differences of opinion with wisdom and compassion. This last post is in tribute with gratitude to them.

Photo credits: Memorial Day, Veterans Park, VFW Post 1040 by rg, Lynnwood Library, Sno-Isle Libraries. Some rights reserved.

Jonalyn Woolf-Ivory, Director, Sno-Isle Libraries

The Vietnam War affected all our communities – large and small – across the entire country. Growing up in a very small community in the foothills of Whatcom County, I felt that impact first hand within my own family. As the war escalated, my mother, a World War II veteran and an active member of the local American Legion post, found herself torn between her own patriotism and the escalation of a war that she could not personally support. For my father, a disabled World War II vet, his trips to the Seattle VA Hospital brought him in close contact with young men in their early twenties returning from Vietnam. As a teenager visiting my Dad at the VA Hospital, I was impressed by the gentle and understated support he provided to his young roommates. Even though over thirty years separated my dad and these young soldiers, their combat experience bound them together.

For many residents of Snohomish and Island counties, the reading of Tim O’Brien’s The Things We Carried forged a similar connection. Just the thought provoking question of “What were you doing during the Vietnam War?” reminds each of us about a piece of our own history. Many of us growing up in the sixties were impacted by the Vietnam War, whether it was from direct involvement overseas or the experiences of a family member or close friend. As I reflect back on this time in my life, I remember the large political and philosophical division the Vietnam War created in our country that shaped our perception of our government, elected officials, and politics.

Thank you for your participation in the Big Read and your willingness to share your memories.

Jonalyn Woolf-Ivory
Director
Sno-Isle Libraries

Photos courtesy of Jonalyn Woolf-Ivory. All rights reserved.