It was the day his life was turned upside down. On an average day in June 1970, Paul Rodrigue did as he did every other day, get the mail. Little did he know one of those letters would change his life forever.

The Vietnam war was one of the most protested wars in American history. Many believed it would be impossible to win, while others opposed such a war because it was just plain wrong. Most did not agree with the degree of violence this war caused, and that “it wasn’t our war to fight.” Many Americans were drafted against their will, forcing them to say goodbye to their families and make their way to a training camp.

“I didn’t feel anything at all,” Rodrigue said. “I was just trying to survive. I had no feeling of good or bad or even if this war really was our war to fight. The only thing I cared about was getting through the day and getting through the night.”

Paul was taken by surprise when he had gotten the notice, forcing him to join the army on that day in June 1970. He immediately began training in Fort Ord, Monterey Bay, California and was sent to Vietnam in June 1971.

“I was devastated,” Rodrigue said. “I had no idea what was going to happen to me, my entire life was flipped upside down, I had no idea what I was going to have to do or how I was going to do it.”

He had no idea what to expect going into a combat zone. He had lost all of his personal belongings, and didn’t know where to go. His only goal was to survive.

“I lost everything,”  Rodrigue said. “I no longer had a permanent home or somewhere to go to feel safe. I only had the equipment on my back and miles of dense jungle, and that most definitely scared me.”

Since Americans were so upset with this war, that same attitude reflected on those soldiers who returned home. Many were treated poorly after risking their lives for the benefit of the country.

“People hated us,” Rodrigue said. “We weren’t celebrated like we were today, and that made me feel bad. I had served for two years, and when I got back, people called me and other soldiers baby killers. I had no happiness.”

Rodrigue’s life changing experience went on to negatively impact him after he returned home. After being away for so long he was ready to return to his friends and family, but to his surprise, he no longer could look at them the same way.

“I started thinking about the people I was associating with,”  Rodrigue said. “Are they a good guy or a bad guy? A person could look perfectly fine and be my dire enemy.”

He never wanted to serve. He was never wanted to go through what he did in Vietnam. However, he pushed through and came back alive. All at the cost of who he used to be as a person.

“Once that notice came in the mail, it changed my life immensely,” Rodrigue said. “I went to war as a naive kid and came back as a half-bitter person, and nothing can change that.”