This letter also dated Feb 26 begins like this: “I’m sorry my letters are getting farther apart, but the mail isn’t too good here. Mail only goes out every few days and same same on incoming mail. Plus I have less time to write. But don’t worry so much when you don’t hear from me, just hope that you never hear from Western Union.” Sometimes I’m amazed at the things I wrote.
“Received some cookies and Kool-Aid, Wash and Dries, tea bags, gum, and two books from Mrs. Caughlin yesterday also. Everyone liked the cookies, although I ate most of them, greedy Robinson.” I don’t remember ever reading books.
“We’ll be moving in a few minutes, but we’re not supposed to go very far. We’ve been back out in the field for 3 days. Last night we were set up in a company size ambush, except for our platoon. We were sent further down the trail to set up a platoon size ambush. Well, that night 7 or 8 gooks walked into the company ambush. We heard the firing and jumped into our holes, waiting to see if they’d come in our direction, but they didn’t. Anyway the rest of the company killed 3 gooks and wounded several others. Claymore mine got them. The next morning the bodies were collected and dumped into a hole. When we rejoined the company, everyone went over to look at them, except me. I’m glad I didn’t as the bodies were completely dismembered. Also last night Rita was hit by mortars for a straight hour. There were a few guys wounded, but no one was killed. So I lucked out and missed all the action. That should make you happy.”
I enclosed a bunch of news clipping in this letter from The Army Reporter, a newspaper we occasionally received. It summed up significant actions from around Viet Nam. The censors let the clippings through, assuming there were censors. I never found out for sure. “One included the cache and bunker complex we found. Received a short letter from Aunt Louise, and one from Aunt Julie yesterday. Also received a letter from Susan yesterday too. Peni doesn’t write much, but I think I understand, so I’m not worried about it. I got a letter from her while we were in Rita. Brings her letters to a grand total of 3.”
“There’s been a lot of jet activity, and B-52 strikes in this area lately. Apparently something is up. They brought us back to Rita yesterday because of the strike they received the night before. We’re working in the jungles outside of Rita to keep the gooks from setting up rocket and mortar positions. I’m glad we left that other area because gooks like to take revenge. We killed 3 and as sure as my name is David Robinson, they’d have hit us that night. But the birds came in and took us out. Hurray!”
It’s now a couple of days later. We were extracted into Rita and marched a couple of thousand meters where we pulled mortar watch. Now today we’re back at Rita and Rita is being dismantled. In a short time we will be put on Chinook helicopters, taken to LZ Jake, and from Jake to Cu Chi only 7 or 8 miles from Siagon. Look for Cu Chi on the enclosed map and we’ll be close by.” It should be obvious now that this letter predates the previous Feb 26 letter. As it turned out we were headed from the frying pan into the fire. I spend most of the rest of the letter responding to situations on the home front. I don’t write about those because they are about folks in the town where I grew up, and I don’t think its appropriate to include them in the blog unless it’s about my relationships with them.
“Oh yes, and if you send cookies again, please send some fingernail clippers again. My nails are long and dirty and I have nothing to cut them with. I guess that’s all I’ve got for now. Take care everyone, Love, Dave.” Remember, I write the blog letter as I read it for the first time, so when I had two letters from Feb 26, I didn’t know which one was first, so I take them in the order my mom organized them. I also want explain our nightly set up. When we got to where we were going, the first thing we did was dig 3 man foxholes. Then we set up our sleeping area behind the hole. Next we set trip wire and flares about 20 yards out and around the platoon perimeter. Then we set the claymore mines just inside the perimeter. Wire ran from the mine to the foxhole so that if the trip wire flare went off, the person on guard in the foxhole could set off the mine that covered that flare. Also I used the phrase “same same” in the letter. This was not a mistake. I think the phrase was popularized in Viet Nam.