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War and Cultural Dysfunction: Stories from Five Generations of My Southern Family
http://waranddysfunction.wordpress.com
War and Cultural Dysfunction is a collection of stories from five generations of my Southern family. Our lives have been anxious and chaotic, reactive to war and its subsequent roller coaster of cultural and economic instabilities. Our family history is a microcosm of the many events that shaped America into the nation she is today.
My nuclear family and I spent many years living overseas stationed among the aftermath of war in Japan and Europe. The benefits and excitement of foreign cultures didn’t always balance the painful reality of our yellow alert lifestyle. When we lived in the States, we were stationed in the Deep South, another region ravaged by war and slow to recover.
Not all Americans have had the advantage of such a broad historical perspective as we. My memories and life review are framed by conflict and reconstruction. Displaced refugees carrying very little with us, we moved from one geography to another. We “camp followers” were required to be independent, self-sufficient, and prepared to relocate with minimal notice.
We lived without roots. We had no home. We did not move away from war; we moved toward the remains of war.
- Added on: Jul 22nd, 2009
- Country: United States
- Language: English
- Author: WCD
- Listed in: Political Activism Veterans
- Tags: alcoholism ptsd civil war great depression viet nam war military brats
Recent Posts
Part II; Chapter 2
Bi-products of the Great Depression, World War II, the Korean War, and the Viet Nam War, my father’s alcoholism and mental imbalance produced a vicious, cowardly bully. There really could not have been any other outcome in those days. He abused his...
Part II; Chapter 1
The bill to compensate the veterans immediately and offer some relief from the unemployment of the Great Depression passed the House of Representatives on June 15, but was blocked by the Senate. On July 28, 1932, Attorney General Mitchell ordered the...
Part I; Chapter 13
Not all the people of color I knew could trace their ancestry back to Africa. Many came from a mixed heritage of Native American, Jamaican, French, English, Spanish, Mexican, Cuban, and Puerto Rican. Theirs was a rich and fascinating contribution to ...
Part I; Chapter 12
I believe my parents chose to participate in organized religion, the Episcopal Church in particular, to enhance their social status. I don’t believe they actually had any personal Christian beliefs. Their church involvement served to further their ...
Part I; Chapter 11
My military family moved well over twenty times in my first nineteen years. Out of pocket expenses added up quickly. Thousands of dollars spent on travel and temporary housing; forfeited deposits and start up fees for utilities; the cost of replacing...
Part I; Chapter 10
My family and I were no less victims of war than those who viewed the stacks of corpses after a battle or those who received notification of their loss....
