Episodes
December 7, 1971: Too Much on Her Mind
Send us a text On December 7, 1971, Sarah writes from San Antonio and, for the first time, puts words to a feeling she can’t quite name — sleeplessness, worry, and a mind that won’t slow down as Christmas, pregnancy, and separation pile up around her. Dick writes from Vietnam the same day, steady a…
December 6, 1971: Only 100 Days to Go
Send us a text On December 6th, 1971, Dick writes from Vietnam with quiet hope — sharing that he’ll be home no later than March 23, 1972, finally giving their family a clear countdown. Sarah, meanwhile, writes a ten-page letter from San Antonio overflowing with Christmas shopping, BX mishaps, pregn…
December 5, 1971: Sunday Without You
Send us a text It’s Sunday, December 5th, 1971 — one week after Sarah and Dick said goodbye in San Antonio. He’s back in Vietnam, stuck on alert, and she’s eight months pregnant, moving through a cold, quiet December day with friends, errands, and longing. Today’s letters show how deeply they miss …
December 4, 1971: Dreaming of the Life We’re Building Together
Send us a text On December 4, 1971, Sarah and Dick write from two very different emotional spaces — she, deeply pregnant and exhausted, needing reassurance; he, energized by dreaming ahead to their life after Vietnam. In these two letters, we see a young couple planning their future: money in the b…
December 3, 1971: Alert Duty, Longing, and Letters Home
Send us a text On December 3, 1971, just days after their Thanksgiving reunion, Sarah and Dick wake up in two different worlds again — she in San Antonio, pregnant and hurting; he in Vietnam, back on alert and lonelier than he lets on. Their three letters from this single day show the softest parts…
December 2, 1971: Grieving the Goodbye, Counting Down to Home
Send us a text On December 2, 1971 — the first day of the final month of pregnancy — Dick writes from Vietnam and Sarah writes from San Antonio. The countdown home has finally begun, but the pain of saying goodbye is still sharp. These letters show what love looks like when hope and grief live toge…
November 29 & December 1, 1971: The Apartment Is Empty Without You
Send us a text After two weeks together for Thanksgiving, Dick returns to Vietnam on November 28, 1971. Sarah is eight months pregnant and back in their San Antonio apartment — learning once again how to sleep alone, eat alone, and fill a day without the man she loves beside her. These two letters,…
November 18, 1971: The Flight Back to Sarah
Send us a text It’s November 18, 1971. Dick is on the airplane flying home from Vietnam — the same familiar flight path he once flew in a C-141, now taking him back to his wife. Sarah is in San Antonio, almost eight months pregnant, tidying the apartment and stocking food so they won’t need to leav…
November 14, 1971: The Reunion Is Days Away
Send us a text On November 14, 1971, Dick writes what will be his final letter before flying home for R&R. In just four days, he’ll be back in San Antonio, holding Sarah for the first time in six months. This is the last letter until November 28, after Thanksgiving and their long-awaited time t…
November 13, 1971: Four Letters, Future Dreams, and the Final Countdo…
Send us a text On November 13, 1971, Sarah finally gets a flood of letters after days of silence — four all at once — and the relief pours through every word she writes. She opens up about her fears around her pregnant body, her longing for Dick to see her grow, and her dreams of having “two kids w…
November 12, 1971: Achy, Lonely, and One Week to Go
Send us a text On November 12, 1971, Sarah and Dick are only a week away from being reunited, but the days feel impossibly long. Sarah is achy from stepping on a bee the day before, tired, pregnant, and trying to keep her spirits up as she waits for one precious letter after another. She hasn’t rec…
November 11, 1971: Veterans Day, Then and Now
Send us a text On November 11, 1971, Sarah and Dick were just one week away from their long-awaited reunion. The love, humor, and anticipation in their letters capture everything that made them who they were — steadfast, playful, and endlessly connected, even from half a world apart. That year, Vet…
November 9, 1971: Thanksgiving on the Horizon
Send us a text On November 9, 1971, Sarah and Dick are both counting down the days—just over a week until his flight home from Vietnam for a much-needed two-week leave. She’s tired and seepy, planning baked potatoes and thinking ahead to the holidays. He’s flying missions, dreaming of her, and thri…
November 10, 1971: Stitches, Secrets, and Seven Days
Send us a text On November 10, 1971, Sarah and Dick write from opposite ends of exhaustion. He’s shaken by the discovery that one of his own firemen has been using heroin — a revelation that went against everything he believed in. She’s sore from overdoing it, sewing and painting and pushing hersel…
November 8, 1971: Horny, Hungry, and Homeward Bound
Send us a text On November 8, 1971, Sarah writes about caring for the baby she’s carrying—tracking every kick, every meal, every pound. Dick writes from Vietnam, teasing her about sex and talking about champagne and flight paths. Their letters, written ten days before his return, capture both sides…
November 7, 1971: An All-Day Conversation of Love
Send us a text With only eleven days left until their reunion, Sarah spends the entire day writing to Dick — adding to her letter like a diary, hour by hour, to feel closer to him. Meanwhile, Dick writes from Vietnam with the same countdown on his mind, sharing his travel details and everyday momen…
November 6, 1971: Gossip, Barbecue, and the LSU–Alabama Game
Send us a text As the countdown to Dick’s return continues, Sarah hosts a packed apartment for the LSU–Alabama game while Dick grills steaks with Pie and dreams of coming home. Their worlds are thousands of miles apart, yet connected by love, laughter, and football — a tradition that will carry on …
November 5, 1971: Flight 66 and First-Class Loving
Send us a text It’s Friday, November 5, 1971. Sarah is glowing and restless at seven months pregnant — juggling doctor appointments, lunches, sewing projects, and nights out with friends to fill the long, lonely hours. Dick, across the world in Vietnam, has finally secured his flight home. The coun…
November 4, 1971: Bama, LSU, and the Baby on the Way
Send us a text It’s Alabama–LSU weekend — the rivalry that runs deep in the South and, as it turns out, through generations of the Allgood family. In 1971, Sarah’s hosting a taco-party game night while Dick writes from Vietnam, worn down by the Air Force but counting the days until he’s home. Footb…
November 3, 1971: Fifteen Wake-Ups and a Family on the Way
Send us a text It’s November 3, 1971. My dad’s in Vietnam — exhausted, frustrated with the Air Force, and counting down fifteen more wake-ups until he can finally come home. My mom’s in San Antonio, surrounded by friends, everyday routines, and the growing life inside her. She’s feeling their baby …
The Allgoods: April–October 1971 — The Story So Far
Send us a text From April through October 1971, Sarah and Dick Allgood wrote hundreds of letters across an ocean — a living record of love, war, pregnancy, and perseverance. In this special recap episode, I pause to reflect on what these first seven months have revealed, what it’s taken to read the…
November 1, 1971: Step Ladders, Snakes, and Seventeen Wake-Ups
Send us a text It’s the first day of November 1971, and the countdown is officially on. Sarah is sixteen days away from seeing Dick again, and she’s doing everything she can to make the time move faster — cleaning, sewing, laughing, and writing through the waiting. Her humor shines in this letter, …
November 2, 1971: Fifteen Days and a Love Kick
Send us a text It’s November 2, 1971 — fifteen days until Dick comes home on leave. Sarah’s nesting, organizing, and laughing her way through the waiting — describing her growing belly, her baby’s “love kick,” and her latest sewing projects. Dick’s letter is full of tenderness and routine — a hambu…
October 31, 1971: Counting Down to Two Weeks Together
Send us a text Halloween 1971 — Dick can’t get a phone line out from Vietnam, and Sarah can’t stop counting the weekends until he’s home for a short leave. Their letters from this night capture exhaustion, humor, and aching anticipation. It’s the last day of October, and both of them are dreaming o…