That war is not forgotten

One winter, long ago, I happened to be in Korea during the war and was not there by choice. Korea has been referred to as a conflict, police action, forgotten war, etc., but those of us who have walked, run or crawled through the wasteland of war will only always call it war. I can relate to those of us that have spent many not-so-silent nights thousands of miles from home, knowing we may never return, in a very non hospitable land and I pray, yet today, for the loved ones of those who never made it home for Christmas.

Whoever labeled Korea the forgotten war did not speak for me. I will never forget the pain and suffering. We did not win this war; we just gave thousands of lives and rivers of blood. Being in certain places during any war makes one feel like a two-legged deer during hunting season. Those of my ilk do not solicit sympathy. It changes nothing.

If one’s furnace or heat pump is not working properly, he has the option of having it repaired. If one is in the mountains of Korea in the dead of winter with temperatures reaching 40 or more below zero, good luck with body heat because that’s all that’s available. We could have no fires at night, as that would give away our position. We slept when possible in our boots and clothes in underground bunkers and sometimes tents.

I have always believed that my very existence is owed to many. My age, 80, indicates that I may yet have time left for reflection and that is what I do. I am no hero. Just one of you. AARON STRATMAN

Bella Vista