Warrior stories open the door to unique experiences, emotions
KSJD Development Director Erik Quiroz's podcast, The Warrior Narratives, is exactly what it was intended to be, a fascinating story that juxtaposes local veterans with vastly different backgrounds and experiences in the military.
As reported in journal On Feb. 7, Quiroz, a veteran who is the podcast's producer and host, provided a platform for veterans with ties and roots to the Southwest. Three are from the Durango-Cortez area and the other is Navajo.
In our editorials, we've written about what local veterans think, how they see themselves as a collective voice, and what's best for those who serve us. I have been thinking about how I can serve the people of the world.
Quiros so skillfully guides his guests to share their truths that it almost seems like they are not there. This is good. He gently helps veterans open up about their time and their families before, during and after their military service. What each veteran did or didn't do as a result of their deployment, and what kind of person their deployment made them into.
Each episode reveals something that few Americans actually understand. Currently, only 0.04% of Americans serve in the US military. Few people still witness the battle. Only about 7% of living Americans have ever served in any capacity.
On the podcast, some families are simply learning about what the veterans featured have gone through. Some stories are horrifying, while others are monotonous.
“They never talked about this deep and isolating feeling,” Quiroz said. Veterans don't tend to share this easily with people who haven't served in the military.
Podcasts are unscripted. Based on the real-life experiences of his guests, Mr. Quiroz began asking special questions. One is, “What does it mean to be a warrior?”
“Not everyone is kicking down doors,” Quiroz said. “They don't have the same experience. Someone might be in the cafeteria.”
Guest responses vary from a deep place of personal responsibility to a range of family traditions and community. Outside of the podcast, Jess, who is of Hopi descent, shared with Quiroz the indigenous rituals that prepared him to become a warrior. Previously, elders prepared their brothers for war the “old-fashioned way.”
Quiroz, an avid film buff and amateur screenwriter, honed his storytelling skills during a trip to Iraq, where he listened to “human stories all day long.” The one that remained with him was from an Iraqi who had been imprisoned and tortured for having a satellite dish to watch CNN during Saddam Hussein's reign. Although the man did not speak English, he yearned to experience the world outside Iraq. This anecdote inspired Quiroz to continue asking other Iraqis to tell their stories.
In addition to cultural differences from other countries, Quiros noticed a great dichotomy among the soldiers around him during basic training. One soldier was studying literature at Cornell University, but he joined the Army because the “white man from Missouri” didn't have running water. Every person with a unique story.
After adjusting to military life, “you're institutionalized,” Quiroz said. Civilians don't necessarily understand that.
Of course, returning to civilian life has its own challenges. Jess, an Afghanistan War veteran, infantryman and dog handler, returns stateside and hastily bids farewell to his four-legged companion, Nero. Nero saves Jess's life and the lives of others by “showing” him where the explosives are hidden. In the chaos of reuniting with his family, Jess regrets not transitioning Nero into something more suitable next to a dog.
Their relationship ended in an instant.
This ongoing thread – apparent change, disruption, uprooting – reveals what local veterans know. One day of hardship in military life, the next day at a restaurant on Namiki-dori. And this information helps non-veterans understand them better.
Quiroz had his own disturbing incident during his playing days, but it happened at the beginning of his vacation. At Frankfurt's airport, chatty security guards lazily wipe their hands and screen for explosives. The wipe turned blue and Quiros was taken into custody in a holding cell.
Kiros had just come out of a combat mission and had a lot to explain to people who would never fully understand what his life was like.
Warrior Narratives is funded in part by Creative Forces: NEA Military Healing Arts Network, an initiative of the National Endowment in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs.
