Missed Connection

Last week, out of nowhere, I suddenly remembered a comment my parents made to me after they made a trip to Vietnam.  They'd met a lot of people, some of whom they'd only known through the Internet before (through literary or political circles).  One person whom they met was a close friend of General Vo Nguyen Giap.  My parents couldn't stop talking about me, my interest in politics, and my interest in Vietnam's history.  Their new acquaintance was touched, because he didn't know of many people in my generation who cared about Vietnamese history.  He told them to tell me that if I ever came to Vietnam, he would be happy to introduce me to the general.

"Isn't that kind of random," I thought, both about the offer to introduce me to the general, and my suddenly remembering it.  And I thought about how the general was getting old, so I'd likely not have much time to take up my parents' new acquaintance on that offer.

The next day, I found out that the general died.  I felt the expected sadness of my missed connection with him.  But since I don't actually know him, the bigger sadness for me is the sadness that a piece of history might have died with him.  Giap had written a short book called "How we won the war," but it doesn't reveal that much.

My worry now is likely similar to that of my parents' new acquaintance.  As Giap and his generation die, will anyone remember anymore?  Will anyone care what happened in Vietnam?