I was a boy scout at their Jamboree in Valley Forge, PA. One night we waited in a meadow amphitheater for President Lyndon Johnson's helicopter to land. There were 50,000 boys on that hillside.I remember when I would hear years later that 50,000 young men had died in Viet Nam that they could have been the very ones on that hillside in Pennsylvania.
Years after that I heard that the 50,000th American had died of AIDS. They could have been the same ones.
The US named AIDS in the 80s. It was already killing and had been killing for years. Rock Hudson died. And Ronald Reagan could not say the word. In the 80s.
1 comment:
Isn't it amazing how our memories work as placeholders for us? That was probably the first time you were with such a large crowd and you knew the number. While it was a positive experience,it has been brought back to you time and again in sad situations.
Let's pray that the next time you think about that hillside in Valley Forge they aren't talking about armed forces in the middle east.
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