I don't know how true that quote is, but it did get me thinking. I have never had the opportunity to go back to where I started. Recently I started wondering about that place. Full disclosure -- the thing that awoke this wondering was an episode of "Magnum, P.I."
I was born in Saigon, Vietnam. My mom flew there when she was pregnant with me in order to be with my father who was already stationed there in the very early days of the Vietnam War. She and I left Vietnam along with other military dependents when I was 9 months old, and I obviously have never returned. It was a place of war, disease, and confusion but was also the place of my birth. It was where my parents became parents, and was conversely the place where so many parents lost their sons or daughters. Beauty existed there, side by side with filth. It was a place of paradox, and my parents and I were in the middle of it.
So, my "Magnum, P.I." episode caused me to start an image search of Saigon 1964 which led to the discovery of a book. (Is anyone really surprised?) The book is entitled Station Hospital Saigon A Navy Nurse in Vietnam, 1963-1964. I immediately ordered the book from Amazon.
The book itself, though interesting and well-written, didn't really unearth any information about my personal story but did open my eyes more to the situation that existed in Saigon in 1964. I don't know if I didn't pick up on enough details from my parents over the years or if they just didn't choose to share everything. Saigon was a pretty rough place that year. Terrorism was real in a time before terrorism became the buzz word that it is today in post 9/11 America. Sickness was also very real. I myself almost died from amoebic dysentery as an infant. You can see in the smaller inset photos above that I was pretty thin. I read that very few of the military personnel stationed in Saigon at the time escaped without at least one bout of amoebic dysentery, so why not me too?
I am looking forward to the conversations that this book will open up as I pass it on to my parents. I know that it will resonate more with them and bring to mind some memories for them, probably bad memories along with happy ones of their sweet little girl.
Discovering and reading this book has been an interesting experience for me. It was a unique experience for me to "travel" to the place of my birth via a book of someone else's memories. It reminded me that books can take me anyplace that I want to go, even back to a place that I've already been.
Where do you want a book to take you? Comment below.
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