For a project in class, we had to interview a veteran from Vietnam. Since Ms. Christensen’s father was in Vietnam as a young man, we skyped him and asked him some of our questions, which are below, along with their answers.

1. Did you know you would be in the war when you heard about the draft? How did you feel when you heard about it, and how did you feel when you were drafted?

Mr. Christensen told me that he didn’t expect to be in the war or expect to be drafted. This was because, since he was in college, for four years he received a deferment, which meant he didn’t have to go to war. However, after that, he didn’t get another deferment, and before he knew it or had time to think, he was heading off to Vietnam, which he says was very overwhelming, but he was able to handle.

2. What sorts of people did you meet in the war? Do you still know any of them?

He was outdistanced from many of his fellow soldiers, but he does still have a very good friend from the war named Fred, and they still see each other sometimes. The two met in training and got to know each other well. Fred, who was an engineer in the war, was actually in combat, unlike Mr. Christensen.

3. Before you were drafted, did you feel like we should be in the war or not? Did your feelings change once you were in Vietnam or after you got back? Why or why not?

He was a dove before, which he felt was ignorant on his part because he didn’t know what it was like to be fighting in the war. After his service, he was a hawk, although he felt many mistakes were made in how the war was handled.

4. Were you surprised by the culture in Vietnam, or did you know what it was going to be like? What did you think about the culture?

He didn’t know what it was going to be like in Vietnam. The Vietnamese way of life was a new, alien culture, but eventually he got used to it, and he feels his experiences in the war were the foundation of his life.

5. Looking back, do you think the war was necessary? Why or why not?

He says that he cannot second-guess his decisions. He doesn’t know if the whole war was necessary, but he does know that we had obligations to the South Vietnamese that we couldn’t ignore.