Have you ever wondered how a soldier really feels when they return home after fighting in a war for several years?
In the novel, All Quiet On the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, Paul is a young soldier who has been fighting in the war for several years and eventually has the chance to take a short leave. When he returns home, he feels out of place. After being in the war for such a long time, everything around him has changed and he has also changed. Everything feels different and his home doesn’t feel like home anymore. The war has also traumatized him and small sounds make him jump. While he is home, he tries to avoid any incidents or questions related to war. The things in his room reminded him of his youth but since he is older now he can only identify himself as a soldier.
When soldiers return home it is hard for them to adjust back to their daily lives before the war. I once listened to the story of veterans who were in the Vietnam War and WWII, they talked about their experience in the war and what it was like when they returned. They said that the hardest part for them when they returned, was getting used to life without war. When they were in the war, they had experienced many things and their old life became foreign to them. They even had to learn how to speak properly because during the war soldier tended to use a lot of profanity. A couple of them had PTSD or shell shock and they all wanted to hide that they were a soldier. They all remember losing their friends and still very emotional about it today.
Image by johnrocks888 from Pixabay
All veterans and soldiers who are on leave are traumatized by the war and have a harder time when they return. Even though they have survived, what they saw and experienced can never be undone. We need to appreciate every soldier who has fought and help those who have survived to adjust to life without war.
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