MY CLOSURE...

Good morning or should I say "good middle of the night". It is 3AM here and I am feeling much better. So, here is the rundown on yesterday's events. At 9AM our interpreter showed up. Her name is Lieu and she is a 21 year old student from the University here. She drove 50 miles on her sisters motorbike to get here. Gary and I explained to her what it is we want her to do for us, help us find Muoi and the family if that is possible. We started at the Ben xe Muoi parking lot and started walking down the alley that we called "bar alley". The alley and adjoining walkways were the same, but there are more houses packed in there now than there used to be. Lieu took the folder of photos I had of Muoi and the kids and started knocking on doors, looking for elders that would have been alive at that time. At first we were striking out... no one seemed to know her, some said she looked familiar. Then a monsoon rolled in and we took cover in a house/cafe on the alley. It used to be a bar when I was a soldier there. We bought some bottled water and sat down to wait out the downpour. Of course we started showing them the pictures and the chatter started. This drew the attention of the neighbors and people near by, who all started to gather around. Lieu told us everyone had ideas, but no one could say for sure. Then one took the photos and left to show to some other neighbors. At this point, we had quite a few people involved in our quest. While we were waiting, two little girls who were so very intrigued with my shaking hand as I held a bottle of water, one reached out and covered my hand with hers, trying to stop the shaking. It would stop, she would let go and then of course, it would start again. She would hold it again, to stop the shaking.... this went on the whole time we were there. When the monsoon ended and we got up to leave, one of the people said there was an elder neighbor down the alley that might know, so we left in pursuit of this person. The little girl that was holding my hand came with us, still tending to my hand. As we stood just inside the door, Lieu was inquiring for us, the little girl was petting my hand. Lieu turned to me and said, "She said there was a woman named Muoi who had six kids, she had died." I fell apart. Gary hugged me as the compassionate man he is. After compossing myself, we left, however, Lieu was not satisfied. We stopped at another house, which used to be a bar and asked again, hoping it was not my Muoi, but it sounded rather hopeless. A woman our age invited us in to her home after Lieu explained our purpose. She looked at the pictures and was talking alot in Vietnamese and then I heard her say Tokyo Bar, which was one of the bars, most likely the one we were in. I used to go into the Tokyo Bar. Then she started talking to me in English and rather good English at that. She was one of the bar girls that used to flirt with the GIs. She said she recognized Muoi in the picture, did not know her personnelly, but would see her walking the alley. She had heard that she was the woman that someone bought her house for her and I told her that was me. She then said she had not seen her for about three years, didn't know if she moved or died. She told me that I am a very good man to come back to see her, that no one came back to see her and that Muoi would be very happy to know that I did come back. She told me, if I ever come back to Vietnam, I can come and see her. We laughed, she gave me a hug, told me "you are good man" and wished me well. As we left, walking back up the alley, Lieu took my hand and walked with me, as I was a wreck. When we got to the corner and I turned to speak to her, she was full of tears...we all had a good cry. When we got back to the hotel, Gary, bless his loving heart, shared his thoughts with me. He is a man with a knowledge and understanding of the human element that is a gift of God. He has been my savior...none of you have any idea what he has meant to me on this journey. We now have a bond that is like nothing I have ever known. Dear God, I am so blessed. He showed me the way to my closier...I love him. He pointed out to me, that obviously, she had lived there in the house that I had bought for her for the rest of her life. "Thom, that one act of love on your part, had cared for her for the rest of her life. You have to assume that she had a good life, just knowing that she lived out her life there." Like I said, Gary is someone very special in his understanding of people and life, I can never thank him enough. As for the kids, no one has a clue where they are and that is OK. Knowing that Muoi lived out her life in our house brings me peace and with that I can move on. Lieu, our interpreter is coming by this morning to have breakfast with us. She, too, is all caught up in this and wants to say goodbye before we leave. You can't imagine the emotional power that has been unleashed, as now I am still releasing.
Let me thank all of you for your support through this, as you have changed my life for the better. Lyndee, Trish and Marion, it all started with you, encouraging me to write my story. Rusty, your kindness and generosity in getting me here, you are an angel. Without Gary, I could not have managed all this. We are bonded, he has touched my soul, my brother. And to all the rest of you, who have offered your support and caring, I thank you all, I love you all.
Now, to close. Kibbey, my beautiful wife, who has endured so much with me as I worked through this. I know this could not be easy for her and yet she has been there in her own way. Honey, thank you for the love and support. You are the love of my life. I have brought this final chapter in my life to a close and look only to the future with you, not to the past. May God bless us all.