Powerful... Reminds me of my uncle when he came back from Vietnam. The things he must have seen, you can see it in his eyes after a case of beer... the hollow lifeless look, eyes that bore witness to things no one should ever have to see.
Author's response
I actually couldn't have said it better. I am also a combat vet, though my baptism was in the middle east, and know many others. IMO, the Vietnam vets had it the worst. While war is the ugliest business there is, they had to deal with an uncaring government, an enemy that was everywhere and nowhere, and a hostile civilian population.
My wife died in a collision on the freeway, but the pain is the same.
Fortunately, I don't drink.
If you want to know how to help your uncle, just be there if he wants to talk. Don't push him, though. Even if he doesn't respond in a way you can understand, he'll appreciate it.
Alorkin