3003 Days of Mike & Me / And the Wars Between Us

Amid 150,000 people, the author re-meets an old schoolmate at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Dedication in Washington, DC, and what unfolds is a love story between two unlikely people; Mike, a veteran of 173rd Airborne Brigade and Ranger medic / LRRP, haunted by his time in service, and Martha, a successful NYC entrepreneur and designer with a client list of fashion superstars. Through their 3003-day journey, Martha eloquently describes their effort to recover Mike's "lost" self as he is diagnosed with PTSD, as well as her own recovery after the loss of their child, poisoned by Agent Orange. Now, Martha's clients are dying of AIDS. Martha tells the story partly through Mike's letters, from the early romantic stages, and after the couple is married when Mike re-ups in t he USArmy. Through their letters, it becomes both of their stories, A Double Memoir, true story.