I really enjoyed reading this story. This isn't a typical story with main characters, a plot, a climax, and a resolution. It's a real life situation thats ongoing and consists of all the soldiers that are protecting our country. Not only was it interesting to read but it was also upsetting. It's hard to put yourself in these hero's shoes because to me, i could never picture going through what they are. Living in tents with over 70 people and just trying to find a clean place to go to the bathroom. After i read that, it made me appreciate all that i have. It made me appreciate the simple little things such as my bed and having a bathroom right down the hall that only i use.
I liked the fact that this story consisted of more than one letter written to another person. It gave me more opportunities to look into someone else perspectives. For example, the first story written by captain Ryan Kelly is completely different than the story written about the clinical psychologist. Ryan Kelly writes about his experiences currently as a solider and how hard it is to just have a second of privacy and he also describes people who he fights with. As the clinical psychologist has used her educational background to discuss what she has seen, as the outsider looking in, and discusses how plenty of soldiers often undergo guilt for actions that may have happened to their men and not them.
I think its important for people to read these kind of stories. I myself never really thought of war this kind of way. Obviously i didn't think of war as anything luxurious but just to hear what soldiers sent to their loved ones has put more of an impact on me than just hearing things on the news. They're normal people just like us who have normal feelings of loneliness when they're away from the most important people in their lives. This story has really touched me to view these hero's in a different way because now i realize that just because they're brave enough to risk their lives for this country, doesn't mean that at times they can't break.
Hi Kat,
ReplyDeleteI am glad that you pointed out the different effect of the different types of stories - how they all have this similar thread, but are, at the same time, very different. I especially like that you have identified the outsider vs insider perspective. I also like that you have pointed out the power of reading someone's personal story and that it can really hit home some concepts that were, before that, only understood as a news story.