Asian Orange was written to fulfill two significant needs in my life. The first need is that of responding to my muse. My muse periodically stands on my shoulder, tugs at my collar, and whispers in my ear that I must keep my creative juices flowing. It reminds me that I have "life songs" that have gone yet unsung. The second and most crucial need is that of allowing myself to release pent-up emotions about the Vienam War, one of the most defining periods of my life. As I wrote, I was afforded an entre into a part of my psyche from which I had chosen to escape. As I thought and wrote about my experiences and the stories and experiences of other GIs, the memories began to serve as an elixir for much of what I had been fighting hard to forget. I finally was able to come to grips with many experiences, as well as to assign reason and rationality to incidents which are still difficult when bringing them to a level of consciousness.-Ron Parker