20 | NOVEMBER 5 • 2020
father died in his son’
s arms
at Grace Hospital in Detroit
from congestive heart failure,
hours after the family’
s Rosh
Hashanah meal.
After fulfilling his two-year
Army commitment, Blau res-
urrected his medical career in
Detroit focusing on occupation-
al trauma, eventually expanding
his practice to include five clin-
ics throughout the tri-county
area.
While in Vietnam, Blau, like
the other doctors’
stories I’
ve
shared, regularly sent audio
messages to his family, captured
on small reel-to-reel tapes.
These often included reading
bedtime stories to his children.
Turns out Blau, now retired
since the early 1990s, had one
final tour of duty in Vietnam,
only this time it was on his
own terms and involved his
grandchildren. In 2013, at age
73, he returned with grandsons
Alexander and Max, who were
14 and 12 at the time. “They
had a curiosity,
” Blau said, a
result of his sharing stories
about his service while he had
his own lingering desire to
return to see the aftermath.
He sought out the location
of the 3rd Field Hospital where
he worked. Upon his arrival
he discovered that “at least the
ground floor had been convert-
ed into a wedding chapel with
porcelain swans and hearts.
”
Could two images be more jux-
taposed?
Blau’
s most impactful story
occurred when he spoke with a
former Viet Cong soldier, now
a guide who described the set of
intricate wartime tunnels they
were touring in the north. The
man had lost an arm in the war.
Blau said to him: “You know,
not too many years ago, you
wanted to kill me, and I wanted
to kill you. Isn’
t that strange?
You hated me. I hated you. And
he said to me, ‘
I never hated
you. Never hated you.
’
And he
put out his good hand to shake
mine.
”
So many aspects of these
brave Americans’
stories moved
me, not the least was that, to a
man, there was a total absence
of any hesitancy on their part to
report for duty.
“I was chosen. It was my
duty, and I had to make the best
of it. I was going to make the
best of it,
” said Dr. Gold, echo-
ing the sentiments of all the
veterans I spoke with.
Those conversations also
revealed, thankfully, that none
of them had suffered from
post-traumatic stress disorder.
Perhaps this commitment to
serve had to do with the fact
that these doctors were called
to duty in their mid- to late-
20s, old enough to remember
the sacrifices of the Greatest
Generation and not yet part of
the intensifying anti-war move-
ment.
After many years of linger-
ing resentment and disrespect,
there has been a certain mea-
sure of healing and newfound
gratitude in the country for our
Vietnam veterans.
With Veterans Day upon us,
we are reminded once again of
their selflessness and sacrifice,
today similarly afforded our
frontline warriors battling the
coronavirus, a battle in its own
right that is rife with divisive-
ness and incalculable death.
Let us always remember all
the men and women who have
served and continue to serve
our nation.
IN
THE
JEWS D
ON THE COVER
continued from page 19
Hillel Day School Grades K-8 Virtual Open House
Wednesday, November 11, 9:30 a.m. and Thursday, November 12, 7:00 p.m.
Prospective families will learn about Hillel’s:
Safe and connected community
Engaging and innovative General and Judaic Studies curricula
Commitment to social-emotional growth
Generous tuition assistance program
RSVP to www.hillelday.org/virtualopenhouse by November 8, 2020
Questions? Contact Amy Schlussel at aschlussel@hillelday.org or 248-539-1484