War Memorials

My brother, Don, of the Philly area, drove down to DC in early January to spend a couple days so we could watch the NFL playoffs together. He also informed me that he had not yet made it to the Vietnam memorial. Being a vet of the war himself and having served with a Marine Corps helicopter squadron there in the late ‘60s, it was high time we made a visit to the wall.
 

On arrival we found a park ranger offering a talk to visitors, focusing on the attitudes at home and the generally poor treatment of returning soldiers.  My brother confirmed for the listeners some of the unhappy facts delivered by the ranger.  Don was thinking of a helicopter pilot he knew, Nickerson, who never came back.  He went to the wall to find his name among the 58,000-plus inscribed on the black granite monolith.  A tattered index book pointed him to the appropriate wall section and soon enough he’d found the man’s name.

After a long pause and a slow walk along the wall, we ambled over to the Korean Memorial nearby and I learned about some of the ‘50s war paraphernalia these larger-than-life figures were carrying on their backs.  Both memorials are quite stunning and well worth a stop no matter how brief your visit to ye olde capital city of America.