In this special episode of Dearest Suzie, we turn the page to June 1965—a month that captures the emotional, physical, and moral exhaustion of war. From routine missions to the haunting fallout of Agent Orange and battlefield guilt, June gives us one of the most layered portraits of Popi yet. It’s the month he leaves Vinh Long for Da Nang, starts counting down the final weeks of his tour, and quietly begins to unravel.
Across these letters, we hear about the daily grind of helicopter maintenance, broken sleep schedules, and heat exhaustion—but we also begin to glimpse something deeper. Through his words and the reflections they prompt, we explore topics like intergenerational trauma, the limits of oral history, and the morally murky line between duty and destruction. A magazine article from Life, an elephant hunt story inspired by Orwell, and a heartfelt eulogy written by Popi’s son all find their way into this episode, showing how history is remembered, revised, and inherited.
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