After his service in the Vietnam War, Norman Bowker returns home and has difficulty adjusting to the normalcy of everyday life. In the late afternoon on the Fourth of July holiday, Norman drives around a local lake, passing time and thinking about his life before the war, as well as what he saw and did in Vietnam. He recalls driving around the lake with Sally before the war and remembers how a childhood friend drowned in the lake. He thinks about how his friends have gotten married or moved away to find jobs.
Norman wants to talk about Vietnam, and he imagines how he would tell his father about almost earning a Silver Star, but his father is too busy to listen. Norman wants to talk about nearly saving Kiowa's life and about how he feels he failed in not doing so. He contemplates telling his stories about Vietnam to four railway workers he sees.
As Norman continues to drive around the lake, he listens to the radio and thinks more about bravery. He thinks about how he would explain the incidents that led up to Kiowa's death and recalls the scene with great detail as the memories play again and again in his mind like a movie. Later, he pulls into an A&W drive-in restaurant and tries to place an order with the carhop, who tells him to talk into the intercom. After he finishes eating, he presses the intercom button again and begins to tell his story to the voice at the other end of the intercom, but he changes his mind and resumes his drive around the lake. Later he stops and watches the fireworks show.
