Exploration 3 from Timmy

So far the story that has stood out the most to me so far is How To Tell a True War Story. The scene that really stayed with me was that of Rat Kiley torturing the baby water buffalo. I felt that was an incredibly hard scene for me to read, and at times I almost considered putting it down for a bit. I felt very sad for the buffalo, and just wanted that part to end very quickly. The fact that they didn’t just put it out of its misery quickly but instead throw it in a well, made me feel even worse. It’s entirely possible it didn’t die immediately but instead drown and have a slower death just really stuck with me. I feel this chapter and story really demonstrated how much war and death can impact someone. A quote that really demonstrates how screwed up the situation was is what Tim O’Brien says about Rat shooting the buffalo. “It wasn’t to kill, it was to hurt.” (75)

Ironically, the character that has stood out to me the most is Tim O’Brien himself. Ignoring the fact we share the same name, I also feel I could relate to many of Tim’s characteristics, especially the chapter where he finds out he’s been drafted. I personally am not sure how I would actually feel if I were to be drafted, but if I was, I think I’d have similar feelings to those of Tim. When he started playing out scenarios in his head where was yelling at people because of his anger, I knew exactly what he was going through. I feel that was a very human moment, and I too know what it’s like to bring out my irrational anger at people in my head. Sometimes I imagine unrealistic situations where I make people know I really feel about something, even though I’d never actually say it in real life. As someone who gets incredibly anxious and overthinks things easily, I knew what he was feeling when he was constantly on the fence about deciding what he’d actually do. That’s exactly how I am when I have to deal with tough situations that are out of my control. I can’t always figure out to do and it eats away at me like it did for Tim.