Guest Writer – Robert Kuhn; What I Brought Home

Keep some souvenirs of your past, or how will you ever prove it wasn’t all a dream?

∼ Ashleigh Brilliant

Robert Kuhn served in the U.S. Army as an infantry soldier from 1970-1972. As a disabled veteran himself, he is a life member of Disabled American Veterans (DAV), Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), and a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Among other medals and awards, he is the recipient of the Combat Infantryman Badge, as well as the Bronze Star and Army Commendation Medals for meritorious service.

As an author and writer, recognizing that the struggles many veterans go through are similar to his own, he focuses much of his writing on the goal of helping other veterans by sharing his own personal stories and experiences, hopeful that others may benefit from them.

Bob was born, raised, and still resides in southwestern Pennsylvania. He is a family man who has been married for fifty-two years. He is also the father of three amazing daughters and six wonderful grandchildren.

Please enjoy Bob’s story.

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Special Memorabilia and Souvenirs

Some of the contents that I packed in a duffle bag for my return home from Vietnam included several items that could be considered memorabilia or souvenirs.

I brought home a souvenir jacket made out of a poncho liner material that has embroidered wording on the back of it: “When I Die, I’ll go to Heaven Because I’ve Spent My Time in Hell.”

I also brought home a Zippo lighter that I purchased at the Tuy Hoa Army Air Base.  It is engraved: “For Those Who Fought for It Freedom Has a Taste the Protected Will Never Know.”

Among some of the other items that were placed inside the duffle bag were my well-worn frayed OD green jungle fatigues. A patch with my last name was sewn above the slanted right pocket. Above the slanted left pocket is a faded U.S. Army tag. Above that tag is a sewn-on cloth Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) patch. The shoulder insignia patch was that of the 1^st Field Force (IFF).

Although those relics are memorable, the more important and most memorable “to me” item that I brought home was my well-worn jungle boots. Jungle boots were an unmistakable classic symbol of Vietnam service.

The green nylon/canvas uppers made the boots lighter weight and allowed them to breathe more than traditional leather combat boots. The polished black (when new) sturdy leather heels and toes helped protect my feet. There are two vents/drain holes at the bottom where the nylon side meets the sole, allowing water to drain out of the boot. The problem was that the holes also allowed water to seep inside.

Those boots saw a lot of perimeter guard duty which was very easy on them. However, often times they trudged through rice paddies and humped the mountainous jungles of the Central Highlands which was very hard on them.

The thick hard soles had metal inserts to prevent sharp pointed pungi sticks from spearing through my feet. One downside to the hard soles was how slippery they were when walking in jungle streams. More than once, I found myself suddenly lying flat on my rucksack splashing in the water or in a prone position in pain from a fall caused by slippery wet rocks. The monsoon rains ensured that the boots remained wet much of the time. All of the above caused wear and tear and rot to the boots, as well as medical havoc to my feet and toes.

However, the boots ran for cover quite well when faced with incoming artillery or sniper’s rounds!

I still have that pair of old boots stashed away inside a closet in my basement. I don’t get to see them very often, but when I occasionally open that closet door, they are standing by, at the ready. A few years ago, I brought them out into the light for one final mission. I photographed them for the cover picture of my Vietnam Memoir “Rucksack Grunt.” Those boots say it all and saw it all. They were with me every step of the way. I would count them as my most valued and memorable souvenir.

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 Robert Kuhn, author and Vietnam War veteran

1/22 Infantry, IFF, Vietnam

Rucksack Grunt.com

*Note: Like Bob, I also brought things back from Vietnam that were important to me, and like Bob I brought back, and still have, my last pair of jungle boots.

∼ Joe

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