I began my Patrol Pathfinder Course in September of 2002, having just returned from a six month deployment to Afghanistan. Three months later and 20 pounds lighter (incidentally 20 pounds more than I lost in Afghanistan), I’d passed. Still, while I may have received my torch, it wasn’t exactly covered in glory. On one particular
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Popular culture is full of stereotypes about military personnel as loud-mouth toughs, intimidators who browbeat their subordinates into obedience. Whether it’s Gunnery Sergeant Hartman in Full Metal Jacket, or Command Master Chief John James Urgayle in G.I. Jane, the characterization of a soldier as a hard-ass tormentor intent only on breaking somebody down in order
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Continued experimentation with poetry, would love any feedback.
Like many an officer on the career track, I did my time as an Executive Assistant. Yes, I walked away from being responsible for the lives of dozens of soldiers, hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment and finances, time-sensitive decisions about using lethal or non-lethal force, all so I could answer the phone and
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It’s often the case that bad news doesn’t get better with time, or easier to deliver. Several years ago, I was tasked as an assisting officer to the family of a soldier who’d died while on deployment. For those who don’t know, one of the duties in this situation can include accompanying the designated
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