--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HELLO CHAPLIN AUDRY
I GOT YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS FROM JIMMY STEPHENS AS I SERVED WITH HIS BROTHER DANNY AND WAS WITH HIM THE DAY HE DIED. I ATTENDED SEVERAL OF YOUR SERVICES WHILE I WAS WITH D CO 3RD PLT EVEN THOUGH I LOST MY FAITH IN GOD AT THE TIME. I'M NOW ALMOST 65 AND HAVE ACCEPTED GOD AND TRYING TO SERVE HIM FOR THE LAST NINE YEARS. I JUST MADE CONTACT WITH DANNY'S BROTHER AND IT HAS BEEN A HEALING FOR ME TO TALK TO HIM ABOUT DANNY. I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU FOR BEING THERE FOR THE TROOPS AND WELCOME HOME.
TAKE CARE AND BE WELL
DONALD J MENDOCHA
Don, so great hearing. And, I know that it meant lots to Jimmy to hear from you. Even though it has been so many years since Danny's death, the pain is still there and real. Jimmy has done so very much to keep Danny's memory alive.
Thank you for your testimony. War is a tough time and tests us all in so many ways. I am sure that God doesn't mind it when we are struggling. I'm still involved with lots of our guys; in fact, the first part of next month, Lieutenant Roach and a few of us are getting together in Reno.
Where are you? What has been going on with you all these years? I wrote a memoir about my experience in Vietnam, I want to send you a copy. Send me your address.
God bless and welcome home to you. Amazing how Vietnam is such a part of our existence probably that way with all combat soldiers, to include all those serving now. I just ordered an album off iTunes from Billy Bang. I read about him in Sunday's NY Times and how Vietnam so affected all of his life. He went on to become a concert violinist.
*****
HELLO CHAPLIN AUDREY
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ANSWERING MY E-MAIL. I JUST WANT TO FILL YOU IN ON MY LIFE SINCE VIETNAM. I WAS MARRIED JUST BEFORE I LEFT FOR THE ARMY. I WAS BROUGHT UP IN A CHRISTIAN FAMILY BUT LOST MY FAITH ONCE I WENT TO VIETNAM. I WAS A RESEARCHER FOR TIME MAGAZINE BEFORE AND WHEN I CAME BACK BUT LEFT THE JOB TO MOVE UP TO BIGGER AND BETTER THINGS, SO I THOUGHT. I WENT THROUGH THE NORMAL EXPERIENCE OF HEAVY DRINKING AND BEING ANGRY ALL THE TIME. I WENT INTO SALES AND MADE A GOOD LIFE FOR MYSELF(OR SO I THOUGHT). MY WIFE KEPT HER FAITH, KNOWING SOME DAY I WOULD TURN BACK TO GOD. YEARS LATER(1991) MY WIFE WAS DIAGNOSE WITH BREAST CANCER AND GIVEN ONLY 6 MONTHS TO LIVE. SHE MANAGED TO BEAT IT TWICE BUT FINALLY PAST AWAY FROM THE DISEASE 10 YEARS LATER BUT NOT BEFORE I CAME BACK TO GOD. WE BOTH HAD EVERYTHING BUT I WOULD OF GIVEN UP ALL FOR HER. AFTER HER DEATH I NEVER CRAWLED BACK INTO THE BOTTLE AND TRIED TO GO ON WITHOUT HER. I KNEW HER SINCE I WAS 5 YEARS OLD. YEARS PAST AND I MET MY NEW WIFE WHO HAD SIMILAR PAST LOSING HER HUSBAND TO CANCER. I TRIED TO BE AN EXAMPLE TO HER AND SHE ALSO GAVE HER LIFE TO GOD. I'M ALMOST 65 NOW AND SEMI RETIRED AND WE ARE PLANNING ON MOVING OFF LONG ISLAND NY AND GO TO STROUDSBURG PA. SHE HAS BEEN SUCH A HELP TO ME WITH FACING MY PAST. I ALWAYS THOUGHT OF DANNY STEPHENS AND JACKIE MONTGOMERY ANOTHER FRIEND THAT I LOST AND WONDER IF ANYONE WAS OUT THERE SEARCHING. I'VE BEEN ON MANY SITES LOOKING AND FOUND JIMMY STEPHENS NAME AND E-MAIL LAST WEEK AND WROTE TO HIM. WE SENT EACH OTHER SEVERAL E-MAILS AND THIS LAST SUNDAY JIMMY CALLED AND HAD A GOOD CONVERSATION. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DID FOR THE TROOPS. I DON'T THINK YOU REMEMBER BUT AT ONE OF YOUR SERVICES YOU ASK ME IF I NEEDED ANYTHING AND I TOLD YOU A RADIO, AND THE NEXT TIME YOU WERE IN THE FIELD YOU BROUGHT ME THAT RADIO. I SENT JIMMY SOME INFO THIS MORNING AND ENCLOSED THE ARTICLE ABOUT YOU IN TIME MAGAZINE BACK IN 1970, DO YOU REMEMBER IT? THANK YOU AGAIN FOR BEING THERE.
TAKE CARE & BE WELL
DONALD J MENDOCHA
*****
Don, so glad to get your wonderful testimony. It brought tears to my eyes, especially about your first wife and her cancer. And, you surely stepped up the plate. My volunteer job is that I am very involved with the UCSF Cancer Center. I got into it when I began to drive Rose, who worked with my wife, for her chemo treatments. She was diagnosed at 30 and died just a month shy of her 41st birthday. For about two years, I would drive her and watched her die slowly and so when you were recounting your story, I was right there. I thought that I knew some really brave soldiers in the Nam, many just like yourself; but they didn't come anywhere close to Rose and your wife. In fact for over three years now, I have been trying to do a book about Rose's bravery. I actually, at her suggestion, kept a blog for the time I was with her; but, it has been the most difficult thing I've ever tried to do. My own grief keeps intruding. I have almost abandoned the project several times but am keeping at it.
God richly bless you. So glad to be back in contact, will put your book in the mail today. And, sounds like you have PTSD (think all of us do to a degree)--one of the things I've tried to do over the last several years is encourage those like yourself to file a claim, if you haven't. God bless. {{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Jerry}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}})) Thanks for sharing the story of the radio.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
UNCONVENTIONAL PREACHERS' DIALOGUE
As adjunct faculty for a couple of universities, I find a fair amount of students who really have no clue on how to write a good paper. I tell them I have a simple answer for them, that it is something they can use without electricity, and they will be thankful in the years to come that they listened to me. When they ask what it is, I tell them, “You must turn off your TV and all electronic devices and visit your nearest library, get a card, and use it regularly.”
I dropped out of school in the eleventh grade with straight “F’s” … then in the Army I had a chaplain take an interest in me and he got me reading. He told me that one of the key’s to being successful in life is learn how to communicate in writing. He said that my superiors may never meet me in person, but that when I write something, those same superiors will be reading it and making a judgment about who and what I am. All from that one paper (or memo) I wrote. You know what? He was right! The chaplain arranged for me to have the day off, gave me a list of classics that I should have read in junior high and high school, and sent me to the base library. When I started reading, I found a world that I never knew existed, and I have been hooked ever since. I may not know all the parts of speech as well as I should, but just by the reading that I have done all these years, I can quickly recognize a good sentence as to a poor one. I can now write a good paper (or Memo), and that has gotten me all the way through graduate school and landing me many, many promotions throughout my career. Reading good books, to me, is one of the most important tools for success!!!
*****
Dan, you didn't embellish, rather told a good story. Thanks. In some ways, the story reminds me of my seminary professor, Dr Boyce. He was 77 and the seminary was forcing his retirement. We organized and came up with a petition, with every student, all seventeen of us, signing. We then presented it to the trustees requesting he stay. I will never forget the day after the decision was made by the trustees that he could teach as long as he wanted. He was so touched by our gesture. The class was called Wisdom Literature, mainly the Old Testament. He could make it come alive because he turned it all into stories. Something like, Elisha walked with God. Dr. Boyce would say, "Here's the way it went. God and Elisha are walking along, "shootin the breeze" and God says to Elisha, 'Look, we are closer to my house than yours, come on over.' "
*****
Yes, it is a composite story of a few events which most is true in my mind.
Hey, I have been reading Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" and page after page rings so very true in what I have always felt to be God's view on man's redemption.
Universalism is a bad word in the Christian community and yet, I always thought it strange that God would create all these people and only get a 10-20 percent return on His investment - every page is wonderfully written with questions I always thought but knew, if asked, I'd find myself without a church. Great stuff!
*****
Will check this out. I'm going to start thinking you have channeled Dr Boyce. "Return on His investment" is exactly something he would say. Makes me smile. One of the things I've been thinking lots lately are ideas surrounding the "next life." Because of my great love of women, mostly, well not only mostly but entirely fantasy. And, of course, fantasy with no basis in reality. But, thinking of a "next life" thing. Maybe heaven or heavens where some of the fantasy might become reality. Now, I know the conventional answers but the same thing with universality, doesn't make sense to me that God's return would be so little. So, maybe the next life could be something less than conventionally. What think?
I hang out with a bunch of guys for breakfast two or three times a week who are unconventional to the max. They either have no or little faith, claim to be atheists, agnostics, lapsed Catholics, etc. They are constantly challenging my usually conventional ideas and quotes from the synoptic gospels. Impossible not to "think" as these guys and one female have enormous experience and education and consider themselves very enlightened: a Buddhist or two thrown in. And, an MD, who spent a year with some guru in India. See what I mean. One recent discussion had to do with conversion. I was trying to explain to them, from my perspective, in Christianity, what makes it different is that at some point, we experience conversion: going in one direction, accepting Christ and immediately making a change and heading in an opposite direction. Needless to say, that didn't fly with them. I tried to compare it to Islam. With Islam, you can merely declare you are a Muslim. And, you are a Muslim and start following the rules. Not so with Christianity, you experience a conversion and all are different; still small voice for some or Paul's Damascus road experience for others. They challenge everything, however, keeps me on my toes and this group is one of the best things that has happened to me since retirement.
*****
That is what makes you a "follower of Christ" in the true sense. Jesus would hang out with these guys too! And those guys would want Him there - just as they would miss you being absent from your group.
On Saturday, prior to graduation, we are having breakfast at our faculty meeting, and I am sitting with my good friend Cyndy, "the lesbian married to another woman." We are having a great time talking and laughing and carrying on. Someone later asked, "Is that your wife?"
I had to chuckle. They figured we were "together" because they could see we enjoyed one another's company.
This is the true Jesus story to me - being in the world - but having an internal mindset that allows us to engage folks where they are - not being threatened in our own faith - and they enjoy our "religious" perspective because they know we are NOT trying to always fix them - just love them!
I think you would REALLY enjoy Rob Bell's thoughts. It is a great book, Jerry. And I think you may be closer, as Jesus would say, "To the kingdom of Heaven" than those who do not have imaginations and feelings about how this life is much to do with the next.
I still believe Jesus is the only way, but His way will be realized by all - in this life, or the next.
The love chapter (1 Cor 13) says, "Love never ends" The fundamentalist says, "God only loves us in this life, and once you die, You're FUCKED!!!" (That is my way of saying it, not Rob Belly.
I dropped out of school in the eleventh grade with straight “F’s” … then in the Army I had a chaplain take an interest in me and he got me reading. He told me that one of the key’s to being successful in life is learn how to communicate in writing. He said that my superiors may never meet me in person, but that when I write something, those same superiors will be reading it and making a judgment about who and what I am. All from that one paper (or memo) I wrote. You know what? He was right! The chaplain arranged for me to have the day off, gave me a list of classics that I should have read in junior high and high school, and sent me to the base library. When I started reading, I found a world that I never knew existed, and I have been hooked ever since. I may not know all the parts of speech as well as I should, but just by the reading that I have done all these years, I can quickly recognize a good sentence as to a poor one. I can now write a good paper (or Memo), and that has gotten me all the way through graduate school and landing me many, many promotions throughout my career. Reading good books, to me, is one of the most important tools for success!!!
*****
Dan, you didn't embellish, rather told a good story. Thanks. In some ways, the story reminds me of my seminary professor, Dr Boyce. He was 77 and the seminary was forcing his retirement. We organized and came up with a petition, with every student, all seventeen of us, signing. We then presented it to the trustees requesting he stay. I will never forget the day after the decision was made by the trustees that he could teach as long as he wanted. He was so touched by our gesture. The class was called Wisdom Literature, mainly the Old Testament. He could make it come alive because he turned it all into stories. Something like, Elisha walked with God. Dr. Boyce would say, "Here's the way it went. God and Elisha are walking along, "shootin the breeze" and God says to Elisha, 'Look, we are closer to my house than yours, come on over.' "
*****
Yes, it is a composite story of a few events which most is true in my mind.
Hey, I have been reading Rob Bell's book "Love Wins" and page after page rings so very true in what I have always felt to be God's view on man's redemption.
Universalism is a bad word in the Christian community and yet, I always thought it strange that God would create all these people and only get a 10-20 percent return on His investment - every page is wonderfully written with questions I always thought but knew, if asked, I'd find myself without a church. Great stuff!
*****
Will check this out. I'm going to start thinking you have channeled Dr Boyce. "Return on His investment" is exactly something he would say. Makes me smile. One of the things I've been thinking lots lately are ideas surrounding the "next life." Because of my great love of women, mostly, well not only mostly but entirely fantasy. And, of course, fantasy with no basis in reality. But, thinking of a "next life" thing. Maybe heaven or heavens where some of the fantasy might become reality. Now, I know the conventional answers but the same thing with universality, doesn't make sense to me that God's return would be so little. So, maybe the next life could be something less than conventionally. What think?
I hang out with a bunch of guys for breakfast two or three times a week who are unconventional to the max. They either have no or little faith, claim to be atheists, agnostics, lapsed Catholics, etc. They are constantly challenging my usually conventional ideas and quotes from the synoptic gospels. Impossible not to "think" as these guys and one female have enormous experience and education and consider themselves very enlightened: a Buddhist or two thrown in. And, an MD, who spent a year with some guru in India. See what I mean. One recent discussion had to do with conversion. I was trying to explain to them, from my perspective, in Christianity, what makes it different is that at some point, we experience conversion: going in one direction, accepting Christ and immediately making a change and heading in an opposite direction. Needless to say, that didn't fly with them. I tried to compare it to Islam. With Islam, you can merely declare you are a Muslim. And, you are a Muslim and start following the rules. Not so with Christianity, you experience a conversion and all are different; still small voice for some or Paul's Damascus road experience for others. They challenge everything, however, keeps me on my toes and this group is one of the best things that has happened to me since retirement.
*****
That is what makes you a "follower of Christ" in the true sense. Jesus would hang out with these guys too! And those guys would want Him there - just as they would miss you being absent from your group.
On Saturday, prior to graduation, we are having breakfast at our faculty meeting, and I am sitting with my good friend Cyndy, "the lesbian married to another woman." We are having a great time talking and laughing and carrying on. Someone later asked, "Is that your wife?"
I had to chuckle. They figured we were "together" because they could see we enjoyed one another's company.
This is the true Jesus story to me - being in the world - but having an internal mindset that allows us to engage folks where they are - not being threatened in our own faith - and they enjoy our "religious" perspective because they know we are NOT trying to always fix them - just love them!
I think you would REALLY enjoy Rob Bell's thoughts. It is a great book, Jerry. And I think you may be closer, as Jesus would say, "To the kingdom of Heaven" than those who do not have imaginations and feelings about how this life is much to do with the next.
I still believe Jesus is the only way, but His way will be realized by all - in this life, or the next.
The love chapter (1 Cor 13) says, "Love never ends" The fundamentalist says, "God only loves us in this life, and once you die, You're FUCKED!!!" (That is my way of saying it, not Rob Belly.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
