Kellan had a worried look on his face when he came into the dispensary that morning. “Jaawn”, he said, “I’m in trouble. Last night at the club I slugged a major.” He put the emphasis on the officer’s rank as if the problem would have been less serious had he taken a swing at another captain or perhaps even a lowly lieutenant.  

Our base at Nha Trang was a training center for the South Vietnamese Air Force. The Major in question served as an American advisor to VNAF Cadets. From time to time he would stop by the dispensary to express his concern about the health and well-bring of his pilot trainees. Because they were sleight in stature, he thought nutrition was a problem. If we were to win this war, vitamins were the answer and he wanted us to provide them. When we disagreed with his assessment he would take offense. 

Kellan had spent the evening at the Officer’s Club and some point the Major joined him at the bar. Still upset, because we refused to provide supplements, the conversation soon took a hostile turn and he began to throw some barbs in Kellan’s direction. 

Like Kellan, the Major was diminutive in stature. Listening to  Kellan’s description of the confrontation, I pictured two banty roosters crowing and strutting in the barnyard before a fight. 

Referring to Kellan’s youthful appearance, the Major meant to say he looked too young to be a physician which might make it hard to develop a medical practice. What actually slipped out, however, was “You should stay in the service because you couldn’t make it on the outside.” Those words, coupled with the fact the Kellan disliked the military, hit hard. Kellan got up and stormed out. The Major followed and just as they reached the stairs, put his hand on Kellan’s shoulder to offer an apology. The Doctor didn’t wait. Impulsively, he spun around and clipped the officer in the jaw. 

Kellan didn’t sleep that night. By morning he was convinced he had committed a court martial offense. Fortunately, the Major stopped by the dispensary in the afternoon to say that he was sorry and the matter was soon forgotten. Once again, however, he left without the vitamins.