In Qui Nhon our group visited the Nguyen Nga Center, a charitable association for children with special needs, offering education and vocational training. It's not an orphanage, but many children live at the center full time or during the week. Some of the children's disablities are thought to be a result of the effects of Agent Orange. The Center was started by a Vietnamese woman, but she was not around when we visited. We were given a tour by David, an American Vietnam War Vet and retired school counselor, who had been volunteering at the Center for 4 months. The kids were so cute and happy to have us visit, and David was very interesting to talk to. He joined us for dinner that night and spoke openly about his personal journey that brought him back to the area where he served in 1968-1969. I didn't hear him speak about specific things that happened during what the called "the bad time," but I sensed that he had carried a lot of guilt about it. He said that for many years he could not think about Vietnam, but eventually he decided to return here and "give back" during his retirement. He said that his second trip to Vietnam has been much better than the first and he has been really touched by everyone's warmth and hospitality. He has felt no animosity. "The past is the past." He also seemed pleased with the changes in the country and joked that communism turned out not to be so evil after all. His work has been very rewarding and his visit an emotional and positive experience that has allowed him to "complete the circle." He suggested that a similar journey might be beneficial to other veterans.
The next morning we stopped at Son My, site of the My Lai village massacre of 1968, in which hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese civilians, mostly women and children, were killed by U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War. This incident "prompted widespread outrage around the world and reduced American support at home for the war in Vietnam" (Wikipedia). I also remember learning about this incident in my social psychology class in college; it was presented as an example of group think, wherein someone might do something terrible when part of a group that they wouldn't do acting as an individual. A few years ago an American vet established a peace park on the site, which contains a memorial statue, information center, and remains of the former houses in the village. Despite the addition of fake dead animals and fake footprints (of civilians and soldier boots) in the sidewalks, it is hard to get a sense of what really happened there, maybe because it is so unfathomable and because the area (and all of Vietnam) is such a peaceful place today.
