Art Print - The Things He Carried

16x20 Poster Print of "The Things He Carried" by Kristina D.

Original was an Acrylic on Canvas - created in our Warriors heART facility!

From the Artist:

"My dad never really talked about his year in Vietnam without prompting, but we as children asked about it. I was always curious about what he and millions of young people like him went through in combat. My dad carried a lot of things home from the war. Some we might know, some we might suspect, and some will never have an answer to. First and foremost, he carried the ticking time bomb of Agent Orange exposure, which we believe was linked to the leukemia that took his life, which is a reminder that even those who come back home in one piece don't come back unscathed. He carried a lot more. Inside than I'll ever know, he wasn't what they call a grunt. He was a young officer running an artillery unit as part of the revered 101st Airborne. But I did believe he did struggle, especially early on. With the things he saw and did there. I loved playing war when I was a kid, even more than Cowboys and Indians. You'd stage battles with your friends. You'd compose elaborate, dramatic, acrobatic death scenes. So, it was with this view of the fun and adventure of war that I once excitedly asked my dad, “Did you kill anyone over there?” He snapped. I did what I had to do, but yes, people died. I felt terrible at the time and never brought it up again. Until many years later.  Later, I heard more than a person ever wants to hear. By the time he retired after 19 years of service, Dad was disillusioned with the Army. To say the least, he was pretty independent minded so I think the bureaucracy, and inflexible authority of the military were stifling for him, but in later years I think he came to a sense of peace with the service and with himself. He proudly flew the American flag off his back deck and expressed his desire to be buried with military honors, which apparently meant a lot to him. I'm so glad he was able to get that. This painting honors all those hidden and buried stories and the things our veterans carry."