In Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried," how do the soldiers keep from being overwhelmed by the threat and reality of death?

In Tim O'Brien's short story entitled, "The Things They
Carried," it is the things they carry with them and the things they
do that help distract them from being overwhelmed by the threat and reality of
death.

Some of the things the men carried were required for
each soldier. But there were other things too. There were love letters (or almost-love
letters). Bibles were carried and photographs.

One man
carried his girlfriend's pantyhose around his neck for comfort. Another carried
tranquilizers. Among the group there was a rabbit's foot, chess sets, Vietnamese
dictionaries, basketballs.

Lt. Jimmy Cross carries a "good
luck" pebble Martha sent him. He carried it in his mouth as he marched, tasting the
water on the beach from where it had come, and his mind was on her more than what he was
doing as they passed through the jungle.

They men talked,
told jokes and made random conversation. When they lost one of their men, some had to
talk about it, while others refused to. Different people cope in different ways. Some
would daydream about a place or person. It was hard being there and wishing to be
somewhere else. They did the best they could...and starting marching
again.