The Marine and the Flower Child

Book excerpt: The Marine and the Flower Child By: Dale McInerney, with Michael (Mac) McInerney The story of a Marine overseas and his girl back home in New York. Their letters encompass a first handlook at the Vietnam War and the love forged during a year apart. MAC: “Everything I’ve ever done －whether it was a mistake or a great success － I’ll stand up to － all my letters are a part of me － I don’t care who sees them － you can print them in the NY Times if you want － and I’ll say yup － I sure did say that!” Dale: “Pretty soon there’ll be no room for clothes in the drawer where I keep your letters. Ruby said I should make them into a book. So I got a loose leaf folder and titled it ‘Letters from Mac - July 1968’. I’ll start another for August. The mailman was funny, handing me your letter today he said, “Why don’t you marry this guy, it would save an awful lot of postage.” MAC: “Today has been one of those long days － DaNang started to get hit － the VC are still rocketing and mortaring the city and surrounding installations. When I was on the flight deck, I could hear and see the explosions. Then we started to take medevacs aboard the ship hospital.” Dale: “As long as you are honest with me about what you’re doing in Nam, I’ll rest a lot easier. I believe there is basic reason at work in the universe, we met at that specific time, to make sure both of us knew that we had a reason for staying alive. We are going to stay together.” MAC: “I must have started six letters without getting past the second line. After a year apart I have nothing left to say － and everything to say. I know, for both of us － we’re tired of missing each other － tired of living in the past and the future － it takes the life right out of me － and having you involved in all of this － tears me apart. But loving you fills me with more happiness than I ever dreamed possible.”