Index...

ripe fruit---
a soldier’s arm
dangling from a tree

The former Republic of South Vietnam is a tropical paradise; very different from what I am used to in the United States where there are
four distinct seasons. In Vietnam, there are variations of one season:
summer. It is almost always hot, humid, the ever green countryside
and jungles teeming with exotic plants and trees. On some days, the temperature got as high as 127 degrees Fahrenheit with 100% humidity. After an hour in the hot sun, our uniforms were soaked, our bodies dripping with sweat. During a fire fight, soldiers couldn’t always retrieve those who died. Bullets and mortars were flying in all directions. Bodies were left
behind. Or what remained of them.