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Irene Waters
Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist
I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.
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Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
A beautiful picture, Irene.
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A beautiful sight to see too. Thanks Robbie.
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very peaceful
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A bit like Halong Bay in Vietnam but less of them.
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not been there, too much association with the veterans …
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That was a war we should never have been in and our treatment of its veterans was reprehensible. I found it interesting the local reaction to those that had either been enemies or allies and it was amazing being in the places such as where the helicopter evacuation in Saigon happened. I could remember the news footage.
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wow that would be an amazing experience.
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It was.
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It does look a little like a beehive! Glad it isn’t though. Very interesting picture!
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Imagine a swarm from a hive that size. Gives me shivers.
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Having recently made friends from the large population of Vietnam vets and their families in my new place, I have a renewed interest in Vietnam. It’s an important part of the circle of healing.
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Yes I don’t know if you treated them better than we treated them here but it was as though they were shunned for participating whereas it was the government that sent them there. An interesting place to visit and see those places that you had seen on the news in black and white.
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We treated our returning Vietnam soldiers horribly. They were screamed at, spit upon, ostracized. I think for the public, the Vietnam War was the first ever televised and presented on the nightly news without the filter of government patriotic propaganda. It was stark and horrific. It was a war against a different culture that fought in expected ways. In the US, the draft was used because no one wanted to sign up and go fight. It was highly unpopular. Fast forward and the struggling Vietnam vets brought the VA and government into the reality of acknowledging PTSD. When the VA realized how badly they treated this population, the vets created the Vet Centers where the VA has to fund it, but is not allowed to access the records of veterans because they no longer trusted the US government. Today the Vet Centers are the only institution dedicated to combat veterans and focused on psychological healing. It’s their legacy in the US.
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We treated our Vietnam veterans atrociously, but it taught us much about the (negative) impact of ignored PTSD and social isolation. Vet Centers are their legacy and I’m grateful because that’s where Todd is getting the care he needs. He served right after Vietnam and all his NCOs were Vietnam vets so he has tremendous respect for them. It does him good, too to have all these Vietnam vets to help him in the circle of healing.
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