Michael shares his life story and his passion and transformation with us!
At the tender age of just seventeen, Michael enlisted in the United States Army. He served two years as an enlisted man before being chosen to become an officer, receiving his commission in June of 1967. After Ranger leadership and patrol training, followed by Jungle Training with the Special Forces in Panama, he was sent to Vietnam as an Infantry Rifle Platoon Leader where he joined his new platoon during the heat of battle. He was the recipient of the Purple Heart for being wounded in action.
After the war he found refuge in acting and writing as an escape from his own demons and the fog of war. He is now an award-winning playwright having won First Place at the Smithfield One Act Play Festival and his plays have been featured in many locations in the U.S. as well as internationally. His very emotional play (Think Twice) about homelessness, was the second most read play on the internet and was produced by the Durban University Theater in Durban, South Africa.
Michael was once referred to as one of the lost veterans when he drifted into the mountains of Blue Lake, California, and lived alone in a trailer with his dogs. This is where he started the catharsis of writing, to expel all of the horrors he had experienced, and in his work are many of the truths he had to endure.
Michael was a part of the creative input and development of Vietnam War Stories, one of HBO's first successful mini-series.
He is also proud to say that he was invited to dance in the Circle of Warriors, and is an honorary member of both the Shoshone and Nez Perce Indian Tribes. He learned many things from his native brother warriors. The one thing that he cherishes most of all is learning to walk the Red Road in harmony with all living things.
In his latest work, A Soldier's Final Act, he also brings us closer to the alarming suicide rates of our Veterans. We are all familiar with the tragic statistics but very few of us actually know of one of these troubled souls.
A SOLDIER'S FINAL ACT
Synopsis:
In the past year more than twenty veterans a day ended their own lives. Suicide has also been the second highest reason for adolescent deaths.
Our story begins with a troubled veteran in a hotel room. He is seeking help from the VA and is distraught and at his end. He is carrying ghosts that will not let him be at peace. He ends up taking his own life.
We then find a family of three who are in the same room having difficulties of their own. The girl is 16 and goth. They are staying at the hotel due to their son who has been injured in a football accident. The father has never approved of his young daughter’s lifestyle or choices. The mother tends to side with the father which leads to arguments between the three of them. The father, disgusted, eventually leaves the room. The mother soon follows but has taken a pill from her purse. The daughter noticed the pills and is about to take her own life when the spirit of the veteran reappears. The girl senses a spirit close. The spirit sees her and what she is about to do. The dialogue between the two convinces the young girl that suicide is not the answer which leads to a reconciliation for the family.
In saving the young girl the veteran has redeemed himself and is transported into a bright light.
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A VISION AT THE END OF THE ROAD
Here I am at last. So many miles and so many battles. From the bloody fields of battle in a war to the battles I have had to fight in my own psyche.
My emotions are overwhelming as I walk along the vast corn fields. I am crying and I begin running. I run for about a mile until I can see the final crossroads. I stop and stand on the corner for a minute listening to the crows and the wind as it gently breezes through the cornfields.
It is a sunny day as I walk slowly down the road. In the distance, I can see the old farmhouse materializing like a mirage growing in the desert. And then, my heart is overwhelmed as I see them. Two shirtless and dark tanned little blond-haired children playing in the yard. It is my daughter, Kelly, and my first-born son, Michael. I can see their dark bodies and their blond hair shining brightly from the sun. "Is that them? Could that be my children? Look at how beautiful they are." I think to myself. They are laughing and playing and my heart is filled with joy as they run to me hollering; "Daddy, it's Daddy!"
Authors's note:
The most honorable duty I ever received was to lead American soldiers into combat. The second most honorable duty was my appointment as OIC of Funeral Detail at Fort Benning, Georgia, burying our fallen heroes. Now it is my personal duty to lead our veterans back home, to themselves, to hold their heads high and never forget the pride.
You can watch it here: https://youtu.be/Yeu7sQ_LOpw
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Video link : https://youtu.be/DRYxIr8gnQ0
