Vietnam War 1967 - Soldier Helping Wounded Soldier to Safety by William Eggleston
A Band of Brothers.
Everyone can feel it. That camaraderie that is unique to soldiers, and which has no equal amongst civilians. People marvel at it. Poets write poems about it.
Recently, one of my posts was the subject of a Contest sponsored by @cryptogee. The contest was designed such that Cryptogee would massively upvote the best comments on my post. In my article, I included a quote from Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address:
On the occasion corresponding to this four years ago all thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war. All dreaded it, all sought to avert it. While the inaugural address was being delivered from this place, devoted altogether to saving the Union without war, insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war—seeking to dissolve the Union and divide effects by negotiation. Both parties deprecated war, but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive, and the other would accept war rather than let it perish, and the war came.
In my article, I also mentioned:
On a trip to Washington, D.C., I visited the Lincoln Memorial. On an interior wall is inscribed the words of Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address. I'd read it before, but something about reading it there, in that setting, brought tears to my eyes.
"Both parties deprecated war, but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive, and the other would accept war rather than let it perish, and the war came."
There were hundreds of excellent comments ... and I challenge anyone to find another post on Steemit, irrespective of age, with better. The commenters came from all over the world. Some were fellow poets. But there was only one person who commented on the above quotation:
Once I got to the end of the article about you reading Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Address, the tone shifted from comical to very heavy hearted for me. I was in the military for 10 years and spent the majority of it deployed away from my family in combat zones. I know the feelings that he felt as he wrote those words. My life has been impacted forever because of my experiences and I truly hope that my children never have to experience any of it.
The only other soldier.
A series of comments and replies ensued and I eventually ended up on his feed. There, I read the most profoundly honest and moving article I've yet to read on Steemit. It is an article about his PTSD ... Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. (photo below)
Post-military, @derangedvisions has become a photographer and film-maker. In a DM on Discord, he mentioned that he'd made a documentary film, called "War-Torn," about a Vietnam Rescue helicopter pilot who also suffers from PTSD ... and, the incident that caused it. @derangedvisions sent me a 3-min Trailer (end of post). It was ... incredible.
The airing of "War-Torn" (Full Documentary) will occur on @derangedvisions' feed... This Saturday (March 10) at Noon EST
Both @derangedvisions and I are relatively new to Steemit. We do not have large followings, and amongst those that do follow, few are dolphins or whales. Will this documentary ever see the light of day?
I decided to do whatever I could to ensure that it does. I wrote the above poem, and embedded the below Trailer, and I've made This Post my Entry #1 in the Steemit School Poetry 100 Day Challenge (2,000 SP), which starts today, organized and sponsored by @d-pend.
Moreover, I will submit this post to every post-promotion channel to which I am subscribed and I will ask everyone I know to Upvote, Comment & Resteem it. @cryptogee, @old-guy-photos, @c0ff33a, @tattoodjay, and ... @enginewitty - you're the biggest guys I know, and I ask you to do whatever you can to give it a lift. And, I ask you do the same for @derangedvisions.
This is personal.
And I ask you, reader, to do no less. Watch the Trailer, read @derangedvisions' article (while there, read my comment) and Upvote, Comment, Follow & Resteem. And ... reserve some time this Saturday afternoon.
I leave you with a quote from @derangedvisions' article:
PTSD is being able to relate to your brothers and sisters that have been through similar situations as you. It is about not giving up and becoming one of the 22 veterans that take their lives every day. It is about being there for your family and being a beacon of hope for someone that is going through the same thing you are. PTSD is a badge of perseverance.
Reading Notes: Advanced