Lawrence Meier, The Things They Still Carry, June 5, June 13, 2024

Lawrence and Vera Meier, interviewed by J.R. Irving, supervised by Dr. Jason A. Higgins, recorded remotely from Blacksburg, VA, on June 5 and June 13, 2024. This interview is part of a collaborative oral history project, entitled "The Things They Still Carry," led by Dr. Jason Higgins, digital scholarship coordinator for Virginia Tech Publishing, in partnership with Dr. Jim Dubinsky, Associate Professor of English and cofounder of the Veterans in Society Initiative, and Capt. Jamey McGrath and the VT Corps of Cadets. In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, we are interviewing Virginia Tech alumni who served in the war and providing opportunities for students and current cadets to learn from Vietnam veterans. Dr. Higgins is training and supervising students and cadets at Virginia Tech, providing educational and experiential learning opportunities to students, as well as a way for alumni and veterans to share their experiences with students and the Library of Congress Veterans History Project. This project benefits from the generosity of a Virginia Tech University Libraries Collaboration Grant and resources at Virginia Tech Publishing. Currently, four student workers are helping to carry out this project and process the interviews, including JR Irving, Autumn Curnutt, Mya Kelly, and Ian Quiachon. [00:00:00 - 00:02:14] Introductions and description of service [00:02:14 - 00:06:25] Early life [00:06:25 - 00:08:04] How did Tech prepare you for the Military [00:08:04 - 00:08:38] Getting Drafted [00:08:38 - 00:16:21] OCS training and Dutch language school [00:16:21 - [00:18:40] Arrival in Vietnam [00:22:44] - [24:00] Significant threats [00:24:00] - [00:27:57] Ho Chi Minh Trail [00:27:58] - [00:29:53] Care packages [00:29:53] - [00:34:46] Operating near Khe Sanh [00:35:00]- [00:39:07] Life in a Combat Zone [00:39:34] [00:41:16] Drug Use [00:42:52] - [00:44:14] Laos, artillery, and taking fire [00:44:33 - 00:48:03] American troops and South Vietnamese Army [00:48:03 - 00:54:38] Questioning the purpose of the war [00:54:38 - 00:58:17] Drug use and other ways to decompress [00:58:17 - 01:04:46] Leaving Vietnam and going back to everyday life [01:04:46 - 01:06:06] Relating to friends and family after the war [01:06:06 - 01:07:12] Stories he can’t tell [01:07:12 - 01:12:31] First time opening up about the war [01:12:31- 01:15:20] Talking with Kids [01:15:20 - 01:17:51] Out of the Night book, religion in Vietnam [01:17:51 – 01:19:50] Visiting the wall [01:19:50 - 01:22:35] How service impacted marriage [01:22:35 - 01:26:54] Pictures, documents, and friends from Vietnam [01:26:54 - 01:29:28] Thoughts on the end of the war [01:29:28 - 01:30:36] There is no need for war [01:30:36 - 01:32:49] Ways you memorialize your time there [01:32:49 - 01:34:58] Soldiers are somebody’s children [01:34:58 - 01:36:09] Did your service change your personality? [01:36:09 - 01:37:41] Message for future soldiers and closing Lawrence Meier Part 2 Time Index [01:37:41 - 01:38:33] Part two introduction [01:38:33 - 01:45:42] Getting to Vietnam and adjusting to danger [01:45:42 - 01:49:01] Reluctance to act because the war was ending [01:49:01 - 01:49:57] Racial tension during the war [01:49:57 - 01:55:10] Drugs and alcohol [01:55:10 - 01:59:56] American distrust of ARVN [01:59:56 - 02:05:25] Rocket Ridge and fighting against the NVA [02:05:25 - 02:09:07] How long did it take to reflect on the war? [02:09:07 - 02:13:36] Gun explosion [02:13:36 - 02:16:40] Veterans on social media/veteran merch [02:16:40 - 02:20:45] Visitors at the base [02:20:45 - 02:23:22] Writing home [02:23:22 - 02:26:07] Food on and off the base [02:26:07 - 02:30:04] Accidents on the base [02:30:04 - 02:33:55] Recognizing the nurses and other unsung heroes [02:33:55 - 02:36:13] Why we don’t need war [02:36:13 - 02:41:45] Personal feelings about the war [02:41:45- 02:43:23] Civilians and the war [02:43:23 - 02:47:10] Discomfort with people glamorizing the war [02:47:10 - 02:49:49] Questioning authority/the purpose of the war [02:49:49 - 02:52:12] Interactions with Vietnamese civilians [02:52:12 - 02:57:13] Race relations in the Military [02:57:13 - 02:59:58] Survive at all costs [02:59:58 - 03:02:20] Finding work after the war [03:02:20 - 03:07:06] Adjusting to peaceful life [03:07:06 - ] Vera Meier