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Before we get started, I offer my poem, which is a response to the eager Jingoists who want to send yet another generation of our children into the next war (Trigger Warning for those who have been in combat):
To Those Who Have Forgotten
Who dares call “Join with us” to me
from their ever-darkening road?
Who dares urge “Send them” to me, ever-unforgetting,
even now in my nimbus of hoarfrost?
To me, who held the shivering hands of a once-boy,
soul-seared and battle-deafened,
Still nightmare-covered by his friend
exploding into blood drops in the air?
Who dares mouth “Patriot” and “Country” to me,
after I have seen what comes home from your wars?
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. . . . . . . .
Please join me now at the Museum of Ventura County
My husband and I are enthusiastic fans of small museums. During our annual “honeymoon” trek to Solvang, we always visit the Museum of Ventura County, which features exhibits of local art and history. Their curators do an exceptional job of putting together programs that not only inform but excite curiosity and imagination. Their current project, “We Remember: Ventura County to Viet Nam and Back,” outstrips their already very high standards.
The Viet Nam War was a major part of my generation’s coming of age. This program is not a dry re-telling of that painful history; it is the personal stories of young men who went as soldiers, and a nurse who cared for the wounded and the dying, told against a background of the protesters at home, and the changing policies in Washington. Through newspapers, popular music, uniforms and other items loaned by local vets, photographs, and letters, but above all, the documentation of their faces and words, we are immersed in the lives of those who came home. The memorial wall shows the fresh young faces and all-too-brief histories of those Venturans who died in Viet Nam.
The curator worked with a local veterans group and a documentary film maker, and what they have put together is extraordinary and profoundly moving, told by the men who were those boys drafted by their country for a war in a strange unknown land far from home. There are no heroes, no glory, no false patriotism – just their unforgettable stories.
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Related Events at the Museum:
Sunday, June 14, 2:00 pm
Write About It: An Authors’ Panel
Authors of books on Vietnam discuss their experiences, followed by a book-signing
$5 General Public, Free for MVC members and veterans with I.D.
Friday, June 26, 6:00 pm
‘60s Music Night and screening of “Good Morning Vietnam” starring Robin Williams
(for Age 21 & over only)
Enjoy a summer night on the plaza featuring the great music of the Vietnam era;
With a local gourmet food truck
7:15 pm – Movie begins in the pavilion
$7 General Public; $5 MVC members and veterans with I.D.
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In addition to “We Remember,” the museum is showing an exhibit on Abraham Lincoln. George Stuart is a unique artist who creates figures of historic people in exacting detail. The museum shows a year-round revolving display of his work, organized into themes or eras. Stuart’s workmanship is always superb, and his engaging documentary which explains the making of the figures is a delight. The Lincoln exhibit is one of his best yet, with photographs and documents added that enhance the telling of Mr. Lincoln’s story.
Some museums seem to think their mission is to collect and display artifacts. The staff and volunteers of the Ventura never forget that the real mission of a museum is great storytelling.
If you live in Southern California, or you’re planning to be in the area between now and July 5, I promise your time will be well spent if you visit Ventura’s museum.
Museum of Ventura County
100 E Main St
Ventura, CA 93001
(805) 653-0323
www.venturamuseum.org
Open 11 am to 5 pm. Tuesday through Sunday