Be Kind and Stick Close To Veterans
June 30, - July 5, 2014.
I did not understand until I moved to Pierce County, Washington from Seattle, Washington and started to meet and now volunteer with military veterans that my grandfather who fought in WWI had died from Shell Shock...Combat Fatigue and conditions from the war that we now call PTSD. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome or Disorder. I prefer to call it Post Traumatic Stress Event. or PTSE, because this collection of symptoms is brought on by particular events and can be dealt with. It is good to remember that an event caused it...and it is not a character disorder. My grandfather died before I was born, and fought in the War in France as a Captain, part of the Engineering Corps.and was decorated for valour. His Signed Woodrow Wilson Certificate of Wounded in Action hangs in my kitchen. He stayed in France due to his injuries after the war, had a French girlfriend that my grandmother knew about... and received a Master’s in Art from Toulouse University. He was very humorous, kind and generous, an artist and a craftsman.
http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/28783-world-war-i-presidential-wound-and-killed-in-action-certificates/
He loved Joseph Conrad, the anti-hero author... His Irish humor hid a soul that was hurting greatly. He died when he was 54 years old after going out drinking with my second cousins at what is now called Seattle University near his family home on Capital Hill. My grandmother thought he was suffering from a hangover from partying with his newphews and was angry so he delayed medical care; in truth he was suffering from pneumonia and had damaged lungs from mustard gas. Hardly the grandeur of Downton Abbey... His death affected my family greatly. It was a loss that has not been made up. I pondered stories about behaviors that perplexed his family at the time, and perplexed me when I tried to understand why people in my family were so hurt and angry. I am still piecing things together and learning the history...Now I understand... drinking, deep depression and withdrawal, all symptoms of PTSE. He never spoke of the war or his experiences but I now know how much he suffered reading between the murky family stories... I am sorry I never knew him...his spirit and this loss was handed down to his children and his grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Understanding him this way has been the greatest gift and much of it is still a mystery. At least during these generations the War Effort... we have believed was shared more equally amongst Americans. I wish R.R. Anderson the Tacomic could illustrate this.
Thinking of my grandfather in May on Memorial day, sitting on his grave at Calvary in Seattle reminds me that the period of time close to the 4th of July and the 4th is hard for our veterans for many reasons; confusion about many things, which many of them cannot talk about. Our macho culture and fear of reprisal and fearing disdain is sometimes the cause...as is lack of understanding about how PTSD (PTSE) is affecting them; and our country’s total lack of understanding how tough things have been for part of the country to go to war while the rest of us it has been business as usual. Even now I do not think people in my family really realize that my grandfather who fought in WWI. and my cousins who fought in WWII basically had PTSE. (PTSD) Even now in many families veterans are supposed to come back and be ‘normal.” How can that be? Is this even reasonable? We hear every day of suicides and families breaking apart; husbands and wives leaving their spouses..."they are just not the person we used to know." Somehow we seem to be harder on veterans than people who experience train wrecks, crime and other violent acts. Tough it out right? It is bigger than America even realizes and like Vietnam will eventually have a huge impact (I hope) on how we conduct ourselves as a nation.
The main thing for all of us to remember is that quite frankly...politics, hooplah and flying flags aside.. during the 4th of July and before...fireworks and things being blown up near homes... may not be so...fun for some of our veterans. Many veterans will not admit publically how much they dislike the 4th of July and how disruptive blast sounds are. Last year we knew more than a few very tough Marine Corps veterans who were suffering, privately and alone because someone had decided to blow off illegal fireworks close to their homes. Recognizing their plight...hopefully some of us will use some more common sense and invite others to do the same.
We know we cannot consider turning off the fireworks..4th of July holiday after all supports our ideas of what we are as a nation, small businesses, the tribes and China. Walmart sells container loads of plastic items...Americans have celebrated blowing things up probably since the 1770’s. So when you blow off that huge firework you are not supposed to...stupidity aside...and availability of fire fighting and law enforcement personnel all we are asking...is please consider that a veteran may not be feeling too great and happy and consider the reason why...before you judge them and continue... Personally I support the idea of Universal Service and our Nation accepting the Responsibility….that if Some of Us have to go to War...We All Should Go to War. We might just get better at it. Just a reminder. Please encourage any veteran you know who may be suffering to get help immediately. Contact Coffee Strong in Lakewood, if you need to speak to an advocate or to get some support.
253-581-1565 and hopefully many more of us will consider not blowing up so much stuff so haphazardly.
Blessings
Laura J. Earles
St. Monica’s Healing Heart Services
Pierce County, WA 98466
Thank you for contacting us
Contact# 7575 0HEART
