Back Home and Floundering

      The next day, I woke up in my room in the basement of my family home, and had no real idea about what I would do with my days, let alone my life.  I spent a lot of time reading, and explored the oak and maple forests around my Indiana home.  My parents felt my aimlessness and gave breathing room as I tried to come up with some kind of future for myself.  I knew that with all of my draft deferments gone, the SS (Selective Service System) would eventually come calling, but in the meantime, I was free.

    Feeling totally disjointed having left the Peace Corps and finding myself back in Evansville, I looked for some kind of anchor.  I started hanging out back at my old university campus.  I still had friends and knew people there, and my social life began to grow.

    I was serious about doing what I could to stop the war and fortunately, I was happy to discover that there was an anti-war group that had formed at the university.  During my first four year as a university student, there were only a few kindred souls that I felt close to and that possessed the same values that I did.  Most students were there only for job training and a diploma, not to question the world situation and explore other ideas that might make it better.  

    Since I was already pretty knowledgeable about the SS and really wanted to do something to help end the Vietnam War, I volunteered as a draft councilor at the Newman Center, a house which was sort of student center owned by a Catholic society, located across from the university.  Using a very informative booklet put out by the Mennonite Central Committee, I was able to clarify what rights people had in regards to the Selective Service, and inform the guys that came in with questions what the different options for staying out of the military were.  

    One week when we discovered that the Marines set up an “Information” table right beside the door to the Wooden Indian (the university student restaurant and gathering place) our draft counseling group set up a table right across from them, which I helped man.   I expected some resentment and hostility from the Marine recruiters, but they, like us, were quite tolerant and friendly when we exchanged words.

            The photo shows some of the new friends I made upon my return from the Peace Corps.  The unruly group had formed a mock fraternity/sorority called Phi Zappa Krappa at my university. 

You can view my paintings at:  davidmarchant2.ca