This week the Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall arrived here in Roswell. It is a travelling, 240 foot replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial that is located in Washington DC, listing the names of all those killed in the Vietnam War. It arrived on a semi-trailer, with a motorcyle escort of Vietnam Veterans.
Mark and I saw the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC a couple of years ago, and I knew it would be a moving experience, having lost a cousin to that war and knowing I’d be seeing his name there, coupled with the emotion of Mark being a Vietnam veteran who survived by the grace of God. We’ve all seen photographs of the wall through the years, but I wasn’t prepared for the vastness of the memorial as it sits in the park. The sheer size of it alone brought tears to my eyes. When you see the size of the engraving of the names of those who lost their lives, compared to how many huge sections of wall there actually are, each of which is covered with names from top to bottom, it’s overwhelming. I was struck by how visitors and park staff alike would help each other to get the tracings of their loved ones names. The park employees have ladders to reach the names that are on the uppermost portions of the wall, but the visitors also helped, if they were taller and could reach a name for someone. Mark, being over 6 feet, was able to trace names for several people who could not reach. The photo below is a montage that Mark made of two photographs he took – one of the section listing my cousin Jimmy’s name, one of the “Patrol Coming In” sculpture at the park.
The emotions you experience, watching people touch the wall, lean their heads against the wall, kiss the wall, as well as seeing the little mementos they leave near their loved ones names is an unforgettable experience. I know I will feel the same when we visit the replica this weekend.
The exhibit here in Roswell will open tomorrow morning, with the names being read around the clock. A candlelight memorial service will be held on Saturday evening.
