On October 17, 1965, Navy LTJG Porter Halyburton was shot down over North Vietnam on his 76th mission and listed as killed in action. One-and-a-half years later he was found to be alive and a prisoner of war. Halyburton was held captive for more than seven years. Reflections on Captivity, is a collection of fifty short stories about this young naval officer's experiences as a POW in North Vietnam. This book recounts difficult times but focuses more on the positive aspects I--the humor, creativity, friendships, courage, and leadership of an amazing group of Americans and how they helped each other survive and even thrive. These vignettes demonstrate how the human mind, body, and spirit can adapt and find meaning in life in the most challenging circumstances. There are powerful lessons learned from this complex experience that continue to guide the author's life to this day. Despite hardship, suffering, and long separation, Halyburton strongly believes one's quality of life is determined more by choices made than by circumstances, and the most liberating choice we can make is to forgive. Reflections on Captivity furthers the reader's understanding about the nature of captivity, race relations, human relations, aspects of the air war against North Vietnam, and highlights the importance of leadership, ethics, and devotion to duty in difficult times.
ISBN-13: 9781682478257
Media Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
Publication Date: 11-15-2022
Pages: 216
Product Dimensions: 5.10(w) x 8.10(h) x 0.80(d)
Porter Halyburton survived captivity as a Prisoner of War in North Vietnam from 1965 until 1973. Those seven and half years were not wasted. Halyburton shares the valuable lessons he learned in the Hanoi Hilton and 8 other POW camps, along with many unknown stories in Reflections on Captivity. These include: the significance of choices made under difficult circumstances, the importance of communication in forming a unified and well-functioning community, and the freedom of forgiveness. His many awards include the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, three Bronze Stars, three Purple Hearts, and seven Air Medals.
Porter Halyburton is from Davidson, NC, a graduate of Davidson College (BA), University of Georgia (MA), and the Naval War College. He was awarded Honorary Doctorate degrees from the University of Rhode Island and Greensboro College. Retired as Commander, U.S. Navy in 1984 and as Professor of Strategy Emeritus from the Naval War College in Newport, RI, in 2006, he currently resides with his wife Marty in Greensboro, NC. They have three grown children.
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Part 1 Rolling with the Punches 13
No Such Thing as a Rotten Banana
Worse Place, Better Place
The First Christmas
Fred Cherry's Ordeal
The Briarpatch
Locked Out at the Briarpatch
Chop on the Log
Butts in the Back
I Know Why Caged Tigers Pace
Stockdale
Hanoi Chess
Teaching the Tap Code
Killed in Action
Pat Lamb
Percy in the Attic
Part 2 Surviving 85
The Onagers
The Escape
The Elf
First Package
Memory Bridge
Telling Movies
Dental Care in the DRV
Bamboo Slide Rule
More Onagers
Deep Knee Bends
Christmas in Hanoi
Part 3 Beating the System 123
A Change for the Better
Sang, Tang, Si, Con, Nat
The Son Tay Raid
Sleeping Bag
Quack, Quack!
The Chamber Pot Dance
The Juke Box
Learning German
Artificial Inspiration Generator
Survival Kit
Boils, Bedbugs, and Pinkeye
The Russian Novel
Seventy-Seven Categories
Truck to the Dogpatch
The Green Sweater
Ghost Story
Hanoi Journal
One Step Closer to Home
Another Step Closer
Home at Last
Epilogue. Looking Back 175
Lessons Learned the Hard Way
Boors in Hanoi
Hoa Lo Prison Museum
Appendix. List of American POWs Mentioned in This Book 195
Notes 199
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