The new set of readings assigned for us to read were much different than the last. In ways, I could detect some similarities in comparison to Black Hawk Down, though not many. In fact, throughout the entire time I was reading both of these, I couldn't help but think of the book The Things They Carried. I had to read that book my junior year high school AP English class (ENG 131), and I would absolutely love to use that as a source in my next essay...but I'm conflicted due to the fact that it's fiction. Anyways though, I was most interested in the second short story, "Soldier's Home". When I read this story, I couldn't stop reading. I'm very interested in the way the mind works, so reading this and seeing how a person can change due to war and combat really intrigues me. The little excerpt before the actual story was a conversation I also found very facilitating while we were talking about it in class. The fact that it was explained as "a stream on consciousness" was actually pretty perfect. The fact that he is literally begging for his life to Jesus at this point in combat, promises to express his love for him after this ordeal is over, and never speaks of him again is actually something I related back to everyday life. I see this kind of thing all, the, time. People will say whatever they need to say to get what they need in that single moment, then forget it ever happened. Although, in the case of soldiers, I can completely understand the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder they may be going through afterwards, which is why I love The Things They Carried. How someone can reach the point of telling their own mother that they do not love her is something I could never imagine doing. Yeah, she sort of pushed him over the edge with her clingy ways, but still. It's crazy to me that someone can come home a completely different person than before they left. Now I'm not saying I do not see WHY this is, I just think the mechanics behind it is interesting. In a way, it makes me want to go through some life changing experience to get that different perspective of life. That might not seem like the smartest thing to say, but it's just a thought. The whole PTSD also reminds me heavily of the movie American Sniper. I there has been a lot of controversy over this movie, but I think it's significant. Honestly, I do not see why it was so highly criticized. People were calling Chris Kyle a coward? Why? Everyone has their own opinion, but my point is that the movie shows the shifts in attitude that Kyle goes through. The different phases shown is why I thought it was such a great movie. Although a war veteran will probably say that nothing will ever be able to fully grasp the experiences they have been through, and I can understand that. I do not think anyone can understand war without actually experiencing it first hand.