Before he would become my father, Ernest L. Martin was a Specialist in the U.S. Army, serving during the Vietnam Era. While his time in the army was not something he spoke of often, he was proud of his service and the men he served with.

One memory I have is when he came to visit with me in Washington, D.C. and asked me to take him to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. I watched him from a distance as he spoke with other veterans visiting the wall, found names he recognized, and made an etching he quickly folded and placed in his pocket. 

We didn't talk much the rest of that night but the memory of him in that moment makes me think of what his experiences must have been like and how I would have liked to have talked with him more about that time in his life.