This
writing finds Thong & me on the 10-hour train trip from Nha Trang to Da
Nang, which involved rolling out of bed at 0300. Each of my three mornings in
Vietnam thus far has involved such
early rising. Train travel is superior to bus, which basically just runs
Highway 1, a main artery for U.S. military movement during the war. The train
offers nice views of the serene rural countryside. It seems to me that arrival
in Da Nang is 1415 or so.
My
first time in Da Nang was July ’68, when I was flying out for a 5-day R & R in Singapore. It was also
my first break from the action of the field since joining my infantry company
in February. I recall how good
that shower felt after the filth of five months in the field. I had no advance
warning of the R & R. A resupply helicopter was bringing in supplies when
someone shouted, “Hannan. R & R”.
I had no choice as to when or where I’d go. Anyway, I just grabbed my
rucksack & M-79 and jumped on the chopper. At the time, I think that there
were only 4-5 men from my hometown of Versailles, Ohio serving in ‘Nam.
Wouldn’t you know it. While
standing on the tarmac in Da Nang awaiting the plane, I was startled by someone
tapping me on the shoulder. “What the hell”, I thought. Turning around, I saw Gary
Davidson, aka G-Man, from Versailles. By coincidence, we ended up in the same
time slot for R & R. I believe
that he was going to Taipei. Small world, huh?
A
smiling Col. Tha warmly greeted Thong & me at 1100 hours yesterday at his
home. We were honored to have been invited to join in the family celebration on
the anniversary of the death of Tha’s mother, who died quite young in 1941.
Tha’s father died just 4 years later in 1945. The circumstance surrounding
their deaths was not discussed, but my gut feeling is that it involved the
ongoing conflict with the French aggressors, who were finally expelled after
being annihilated in 1954 at Dien Ben Phu. Following the death of his parents,
Tha had joined in the fighting against the French and remained in the military
through the “American War”. That’s
a whole lot of battle, folks.
After
initial greetings, Tha, Thong, and I climbed the three-story spiral mahogany
staircase to the altar commemorating Tha’s mother. At 90 years, Tha made the
ascent with relative ease. We each stood before the altar & bowed twice
with clasped hands, as is the custom.
Then Tha presented me with very special gifts of great significance.
First came a multiple-page writing that Tha advised contained important
military information relative to his interaction with the 196th
Light Infantry at Nhi Ha/DMZ in May ’68. It’s written in Vietnamese, so I’ll
need to have in translated. Over and over Tha made reference to its
significance and asked that I make sure that all U. S. troops involved in that
battle have access….especially officers.
This information has never before been released and I am honored to be considered worthy. I
am most anxious to have someone translate, a task for which I’ll have to
provide compensation. This has to be accurate, so using Google or a similar
translation method is out of the question. Really, this is huge.
The
next gift was a very neat wooden pen in a wooden case…unusual as can be. Then
came two photos from our first meeting that he had printed and laminated for
me. That 2015 initial encounter was a special moment for each of us. Meeting
the enemy with whom you fought in brutal battle is a sobering
experience….especially when that enemy was the NVA battalion commander.
Last
year Tha surprised me by presenting his doctor ID badge, an unbelievable honor
for someone who is not family. Following the war’s 1975 ending, he had gone to
medical school to become a physician, a profession that he practiced until 85
years of age in 2012. Well, as if
the badge wasn’t enough of an honor, yesterday he topped it by presenting his
doctor smock and cap. Amazing. Col. Tha treats me like one of the family. He
wanted me to don the smock and cap, a request that I obliged…fits perfectly.
Tha’s
gifts to me certainly surpassed mine to him. I gave a 400-count bottle of adult
multi-vitamins, a 250-count container of ibuprofen, and a brass “U.S.” color
insignia from my dress uniform.
80% of vitamins, pain relievers, and such purchased in Vietnam are fake,
by the way. So, I bring these items with me in luggage. I also presented a
laminated copy of the Copper River Record, which contained an excellent feature
by Matt Lorenz involving the ongoing humanitarian effort in Vietnam as well as
last year’s retrieval of Lt. Kimball’s razor from the colonel. Tha asked if the Kimball family was
pleased to receive the razor after all these years, to which I responded with
an emphatic affirmative.
There
was an obvious effort on the part of Col. Tha and his son, mayor of Nha Trang,
to avoid battle specifics. Each time I would make an inquiry about the Nhi Ha
battle, there was no focus on responding. Finally I asked Thong, my interpreter
and friend, why no answers were forthcoming. He quietly responded, “They want to shield you from bad
memories”. My former foe now wishes
to cast our horrors of battle as “the past”. If only it were that easy. For me, it is an unfortunate impossibility.
I
did, however, mange to learn an interesting bit of information from Tha. His focus in the May Nhi Ha/DMZ battle
was to attack the Marine 2/4 (2nd
Battalion, 4th Marines). But, when the 196th Light
Infantry arrived, his plans came unraveled. We were exactly where he didn’t
want us to be. Had he engaged 2/4, his flanks and rear would have been very
vulnerable to a 196th attack. According to Commander Tha, he feared
losing all his men killed. So, it was necessary to alter his focus to the 196th
to avoid being “caught in the middle” and annihilated. Interesting stuff. I
will most certainly learn more when the papers are translated.
The
meal served in honor of Tha’s mother was an amazing display of dishes. We all
ate until filled to the brim. Then it came time to, once again, say goodbye. I
told Col. Tha to “not go anywhere” because I would be back next year!
The
overall respect that is bestowed upon me in Vietnam by everyone…young, old,
former foes….is humbling. For example, yesterday some folks who recognized me
from last year’s Vietnamese TV and newspaper stories, posed for photos. This is
quite a journey.
Tomorrow
morning I will be visiting The, Duong, and Thua. A car has been hired with a 0800 start time. So, I’ll be
back where I first joined my infantry company in Feb ’68 as green, fresh
soldier.
After
arriving in Da Nang and checking into the hotel, I visited Thong & family
at his house. We made a motorbike run to a nearby grocery for the purpose of
obtaining gifts for tomorrow’s visits.
That’s
it for now. This boy is sort of weary tonight and will forgo proofing/refining
this writing. More after tomorrow’s visits.
Neil
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| Major Tha 1972 |
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| Gifts for Tha |
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| Memorial Meal |
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| Memorial Altar for Tha's Mother |
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| Wooden Pen Gift from Tha |
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| Saying Goodbye |
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| Neil Wearing Tha's Medical Smock/Hat |
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| Incense and Displaying Respect for Tha's Mother |
