Scars of the past will always be present, time can heal those wounds

Photographs selected by Ellen Glass as a special images from the trip to Vietnam.

The top photograph is exhibited in the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City . It shows the destruction of Agent Orange on the Vietnamese countryside.
The bottom photograph is of the vegetated area today around the former US Camp Elliot Base, known as the Rockpile in the old Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Ellen writes:

“Nature’s creative power is far beyond man’s instinct of destruction.”

Jules Verne.

I found it really difficult to settle on just one photo for this reflection. There were so many moments captured throughout this trip that serve as reminders for everything from the extraordinary people who made our experience so enjoyable to the incredibly emotional and significant reminders of this country’s dark past that we were there to experience to the developing maturity of the wonderful young people who were chosen for this once in a lifetime trip (something that we as teachers live for). But one thing I kept coming back to was the sense of awe I felt all over Vietnam when looking at the unparalleled beauty of this country’s natural landscapes, particularly after learning about the extent of the destruction inflicted upon it just over 50 years ago.

I have travelled to many former war zones and one thing that always strikes me is nature’s incredible capacity to come back from the brink of destruction and flourish if given the chance. While the above images are not of the same specific place, looking at them side by side and seeing the stark contrast of the horrific devastation of war and the tranquil beauty of nature is something I found particularly powerful on this trip. The image on the left was taken at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City and is one of the countless photos depicting the destruction of the natural world caused in an instant by Agent Orange. It’s unknown where this photo is from, but in a way, that makes it more powerful. It has become a representation of the more than 22,000km² of forest and farm land destroyed by Agent Orange during the war and the millions of people who continue to be affected by its destructive power.


The bottom photograph is of the Rockpile, or Thon Khe Tri in Vietnamese; a “blink and you’ll miss it” place just south of the DMZ, but a scene of incredibly bloody and intense fighting from the US Marines intent on capturing this strategically vital vantage point and the North Vietnamese Army fighting just as bitterly to defend it. More than 1000 people on both sides lost their lives here in July-August 1966 and upon capturing it, the Americans used napalm to “clear” the landscape in order to use this place as an important base. It became a place that would have in many ways mirrored the image from the museum.

Although it was a brief stop on our tour, I was struck by the majesty of the setting, even before listening to Martin and Malcolm explain its significance. But hearing it described as being valued only for the strategic advantage it would give whoever was able to capture it and imagining the Marines battling the elements and physical exhaustion to scale up the 230m rock face in the midst of fierce NVA resistance, then stripping the land to make it viable as a military base made me question how this place could possibly have recovered to a state of such natural magnificence.

I felt this a lot during our trip and found it difficult in some places to connect the sheer beauty of what I was seeing to the horrific imagery being painted in my head when learning what happened there. Trying to make these connections fascinates me and from them, I know that while the scars of the past will always be present, time can heal those wounds. While I’ve felt this before in other places around the world, what was different about this trip was seeing this idea reflected in the Vietnamese people. Most places where I have felt this have had a century or so to heal and the locals are becoming increasingly distant from their past. But in Vietnam, the past is still very much in living memory and the scars are still forming for the people and for the country. However, if the scenery we saw and the people we met are anything to go by, the country has a bright future ahead.

It just goes to show that despite nature’s fragility, if given the opportunity, “Nature’s creative power is far beyond man’s instinct of destruction.” Jules Verne.