Veterans' Day

I went to a Veterans’ Day breakfast at the local VFW this morning. A guy invited me while I was speaking to that vet, Will, yesterday.

It was a pretty amazing experience. I had a great home cooked meal, including biscuits and gravy, and about 5 cups of coffee (best placebo for cigarettes and alcohol I’ve got). I spoke with a WWII guy for a while. He was definitely something – wearing his purple heart on his gold necklace.

I spent most of my time speaking with these to guys from Vietnam – an army man and a marine man (the difference is of utmost importance as I’ve now learned from countless insults and rivalrous, though playful, fightin’ words). The Nam guys are endlessly interesting, from the incredible grit of their war stories to the complexity of their reception at home in the late sixties. The dichotomy of being in that time period and taking part yet also believing in the American way runs deep in these vets. One man spoke about burning a marijuana field in Nam, saying, “My lieutenant came up asking where all the men were and I said, ‘You see that big cloud of smoke over there? That’s where they are. And I’m about to go over there and join them.’” He also told me of his nerve wracking experiences crawling through Vietcong tunnels as a demolition man, and the three months missing from his memory while he was held as a POW.

When it comes down to it now, these men are simply looking for community and purpose. Unfortunately, at least in the case of Vietnam Vets, they are dealing with more than just post-traumatic stress or a longing to share their experiences with people who can relate, but psychiatric issues grounded in the effects of the chemical warfare of the time. We’ve all seen plenty of movies, but today was definite proof for me of how little we can know of peoples’ experience until we’ve met them first hand – even then we can only begin to understand.

It was a great time though. I had a lot of laughs through the morning, and felt welcomed into the local community. I got my first interview on video tape as well which will hopefully be up on the site soon. Unfortunately it’s been raining all day so my b-roll footage is suffering.

I’m starting to get the hang of working my way into communities and gaining trust from people, but I'm still learning how to bring my camera into these situations early on without disturbing peoples’ trust. It’s especially difficult when I’m hoping to move quickly through places. In two days you can certainly make some friends. The challenge is encapsulating this brief moment of intimacy. No way to learn but by doing.