Emma sat watching people pass. “I love it here, Richard. Do you remember the night we first came to the Mall? We walked and walked. How I loved the way you twirled your cane. You made me feel like a queen the way you treated me, taking my arm so I wouldn’t fall into the Reflecting Pool. Oh, I loved you then, Richard. I love you still.”

Emma stood and walked to the Wall, rubbing Richard’s name etched there. She patted the letters, a tear coursing down her cheek as she placed a carnation at the base of the wall.
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On this Flag Day I salute the men and women who gave their lives for our freedom. According to The Wall online the first American soldier killed in the Vietnam War was Air Force T-Sgt. Richard B. Fitzgibbon. This is a fictional piece written to honor him and those who followed.

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for Velvet Verbosity’s challenge: Reflecting.