The Beginning

       Starting from the beginning…..The year was 1999 and it was a typical late summer day in Slidell, Louisiana. The rain lazily sprinkled down from the dark gray sky as I aimlessly wandered into a small local plaza near the less than desirable trailer park I had been residing in for the past several months. I didn’t want to ruin my only pair of good shoes so I decided that traveling barefoot would be best.  Minutes later I suddenly found myself across the street from an Army Recruiter office.  I thought to myself “hmmm…  why not?” After all I considered myself a grown man at the old wise age of 17 and maybe it was time for a change in my life. As I pushed the door open I immediately met what would be my future recruiter who greeted me with an infectious smile plastered on his face.  At his desk, I began to pour out my need to find adventure and a purpose in this world as he actively nodded and ensured me he could make my dreams a reality. The next day he came to my house with a new pair of shoes in one hand and papers in the other. Well, that pretty much sealed the deal.. in a matter of days I signed the contract that would ultimately take me on experiences across lands I could never even begin to imagine.    

"Ummm.... Can you get me into the Army?"

     I had a typical rough childhood, and Burger King had been my sole employer for the last 18 months.. That’s right I was dedicated to the King, but it was definitely time for a change I thought as I boarded the old military bus headed straight to Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. 

     I didn’t really know what to expect from the first day of Basic Training, but for some reason I didn’t foresee all the intense up close and personal yelling / spiting.  I kept telling myself “it’s OK.. these guys can’t hit you, so it won’t be that bad” That is until day 4 when in a room of thirty Soldiers a Drill Sergeant leaped over two rows of people to grasp my jaw with his mammoth hand and proceeded to slam my head into a stone wall. I had apparently smirked while filling out some random military documents, and that was most certainly not going to be tolerated. After that incident I became pretty scared to say the least.  Another incident occurred on the 8^th week.. right before graduation all the recruits were learning how to properly fold our dress uniforms. The Drill Sergeant stated “OK, Privates, fold the left sleeve over the right”.  As I began my fold I felt an intense pressure on my head and multiple colors quickly followed. When my vision gradually started to come back into focus I saw one of the Drill Sergeants roaring at me at the top of his lungs “LEFT OVER RIGHT!!!”  I must have foolishly folded right over left. What was I thinking right?  That night I tightly wrapped myself up in my sheets while lying in bed and quietly shed a few salty tears thinking about how much I missed my old life as a civilian in Slidell, Louisiana.  As it turned out I did eventually complete basic training successfully and even was awarded a certificate for “Most Improved Soldier”… I guess those beatings worked…  (small side note: two of the three Drill Sergeants got brought up on assault charges 18 months later and received a court martial, turns out they were treating the whole platoon like punching bags)  I went on to AIT to become a Combat Engineer… sounds glorious doesn’t it?   And that readers is where the stories start getting interesting….

 

(December 1999)