I thought I would share this memory of my encounter with a chaplain. This is one memory that I've never posted before. I call it an "encounter" because it was just a brief conversation that I (almost) had with a Chaplain in Vietnam.

It was early in the morning hours of the next day following the start of riot at the USARV Stockade on Long Binh Post. The control of the stockade had finally been regained by MP's from various companies on Long Binh Post. I had been beaten by several prisoners and saw other MP's beaten even worse during the riot, I felt a deep need to talk to someone about the events of that night.

I guess what I really wanted to hear was someone to say that everything was going to be alright. After 3-4 hours of feeling like I was going to "lose it," I happened to see a Chaplain, the rank of Captain, crossing the stockade compound approaching my duty post. As he came near, I saluted and ask if I could speak to him. He said that I could. I then told him that I was having a hard time of making sense of all that had just happened. His response was "we are all having a hard time of it...troop," and he just turned and walked away.

I was anticipating just a little bit longer of a conversation than that. If he had just said that everything was going to be alright, that would have helped. Maybe I was expecting to much. As he walked away, I remember saying to myself what a sorry s.o.b. he was. At that time in my life felt like I wanted to dig a hole and jump in. All these years I have wished that I had never opened my mouth.

SP/4 Larry J. Kimbrough, B Company, 720th Military Police Battalion, April 1968 to June 1968 and 557th MP Company, 95th MP Battalion, June 1968 to March 1969.