Elk Grove Citizen Newspaper Lifestyle Section 12/10/2003
Dressed in his green Army clothes and draped with metal dog tags on thin beaded
chains, Vietnam veteran Bill McDonald of Elk Grove recently sat down to discuss
his newly published novel , "A Spiritual Warrior's Journey: The Inspiring Life
Story of a Mystical Warrior." The 342 page book, which is filled with what
McDonald calls "real life experiences," relates many stories, which McDonald
said that some people believe, while others disbelieve.
"Nobody has to believe what I wrote," McDonald said. "People may believe that
what I am totally nuts or that I'm a total lair, but if they believe what I am
saying is true, it's gonna change what their life is all about."
Chapter after chapter, one can read stories involving subjects
such as futuristic dreams, visions and out-of- body experiences.
With an earnest and intense look on his face, McDonald, 57, who
completed his tour of duty with the 128th Assault Helicopter Company, "The
Tomahawks" in Phu Loi, South Vietnam , from October 1966 through October 1967,
recounted various segments from his book.
There was the "JFK Dreams" segment in which McDonald spoke of
seeing reoccurring dreams of Kennedy's assassination prior to his shooting; the
"Christmas Lights and Love " segment, a story about McDonald's psychic
experience, when he proposed to his high school sweetheart, Carol, who remains
his wife today; and the "Hitchhiker" segment , the story of how McDonald
encountered a hitchhiker that had dreamed he would meet a man that looked
exactly like McDonald that would save him from committing suicide. The story
gets even more detailed , as McDonald claims that the hitchhiker finds enough
peace to continue his life.
McDonald's Vietnam tales consist of stories, like when he said
that he was fired at by an enemy machine gun from a distance of about 10 feet
away and saw the rounds pass though him like beams of light, only to strike
human flesh directly behind him.
He also said that there were times when he could touch about 30
helicopters be able to to say which ones would be shot down.
McDonald continued to retell many stories , which are printed in
his book about his experiences prior to and after his time in Vietnam. "A lot of
people who know my stories wanted me to only have my book about Vietnam,
but I told them if I didn't explain other times in my life, that they wouldn't
know the full story about me," McDonald said. "I was having these things happen
to me." long before I ever went to Vietnam."
Although McDonald said that he has had more than 50
out-of-body-experiences , he believes that is no need to include any more than
one such story - "A Ride Inside A rainbow" - as the most enlightening spiritual
encounter of his lifetime.
In the "rainbow" story, McDonald said, "As I lay there on my
bed, I turned my attention to a photograph of my guru smiling at me from my
bedside table. I was particularly focused on his eyes as my ...continued
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