Epilog 2014

 

 As all journeys must, this one has come to an end.  My “Ride Across America” took root in the Vietnam experience.  Vietnam was a pivot point that shaped many lives and I am no exception…never fully trusting happiness, I am driven, unrelenting, uncompromising, and too often lured to adrenaline- charged endeavors.  In short, I can be difficult.  These traits have been a heavy burden for my wife who remains steadfastly faithful in her love for me.  She grasps and does not scorn my will to live life unrestrained in a manic fashion nor begrudge those times when I seek solitude.  When I venture off alone, she appreciates that I am simply hitting life’s reset button.  She worries but never thwarts these endeavors and remains forever supportive.  Together we have discovered the power of love and together raised two incredibly high achieving daughters who love us dearly.  Without her support this journey would never have occurred.

 Bizarre as it seems, I flew to war on a commercial airliner with amenities served by good-natured and pretty stewardesses.  Transported to Long Bien, I was nearly hijacked by a unit to which I was not assigned but who sought to secure live bodies to fill their depleted ranks.  By grace, an officer interceded and demanded to see my orders and put a stop to this larceny.  Redirected to my intended unit, it was there that I met, soldiered, laughed and went to war with the nine souls who accompanied me on my “Ride Across America” some 45 years after my return from Vietnam.  Their memories were my only companions.  Too early, their lives and futures were the causalities of that war, leaving only an empty seat in the hearts of those who loved them.  Taking time to write their stories, describe their personalities, how, when, and where they were lost was my personal tribute to each.  These I carried in my saddlebags and upon completion of the trip lovingly cast them onto the “Great Beyond” with the aid of helium inflatables.  From our destination in Seattle, their stories were carried with the winds eastward in hopes that they might again reach our point of departure…the Vietnam Memorial. An accompanying note was enclosed: “If you find this packet, carried by bicycle from Washington, D.C., to Seattle and then sent aloft by balloon, you will read the stories of my friends.  Take a moment to absorb their sacrifice and reflect on the absurdity of their loss.  If you are moved by their stories, return them to our starting point…the Vietnam Memorial.  While there, seek your reflection on the polished granite walls and let the solemnity of that moment counsel your thoughts…But for the grace of God.”

 Stephan E. Speer, Staff Sergeant, United States Army, 1968 - 1970