The American Soldier

The American Soldier

A young man enlists in the Army.  Perhaps because he needs the bonus dollars of enlisting.  Perhaps because he has a romantic thought about being a soldier, heightened by an Army recruiter.  Perhaps he didn’t know what he wanted, so he joined the Army while he thought it out.  However our sons and daughters  arrive at the Service, they find themselves face to face with a Drill Sergeant on a mission.  His mission is to change civilians into warriors and soldiers.

Months of training later, our young man is a soldier, one of the few and the proud.    He is probably in better physical shape then ever before, but he has changed much more than physically.  Teamwork, commitment and comradeship have taken on new meanings to him.  His confidence in himself and his ability to cope is much greater than just a few mere months before.  Now he can walk in uniform and know he is an American soldier.  His parents can tell the difference in how he acts, and how clean his room now is.

Time goes on.  Our soldier develops.  He learns his craft with his assigned unit.  The days are long and often the weeks go through the weekend.  What weekend?  His character is developing.  Getting proficient and learning the skills needed takes constant practice and dedication.  His leadership skills grow as what once was hard becomes routine and he now has to teach as well as do.  The values of service, loyalty and duty begin to have a much more profound effect on him.

He meets his soul mate, he falls in love and soon he is married.  She is proud of her husband the soldier.  On the post that they are stationed at, many activities take place which bring families together, and she becomes part of the larger military family.  She witnesses first hand the love, the worry and the devotion other spouses have as they cope with the military.  Coping can be difficult, but many are at the post to help.

In time, they are not two, but three, as the first of several children are born.  His spare time is spent on schooling.  Education is always needed and encouraged.  They cope with a limited budget, demanding schedules and the challenges of raising a child. Soldiering is not a path to material riches, all soldiers and their families live on budgets.

The Nation calls, and he must answer.  There is no hesitation in his answer, as this is his calling.  If his life were not already over busy and crowded, the pace just got quicker.  Predeployment actions take all waking hours.  Beyond getting the unit and its equipment ready, the family also has to be ready.  Where are the powers of attorney, who has the passports, where are the medical records?  The wife is nervous.  This is new to both of them.

Tearful goodbyes.  There is not a lot to say when a unit ships out.  The children try and be brave.  Braver still are the spouses who watch their other halves go off to war.  They are the unsung heroes.  They are proud, but sad.  Speeches are made, but it is a time of sober reflection.  Emotions are high and tears flow easily.

The desert welcomes all new soldiers with a blast of heat.  100 degrees is considered cool in the day time.  There can be a fifty degree drop at night.  The glare of the sun beating off the sand makes sunglasses a requirement, not a nicety.  Pucker factors get higher as the unit marries up with its equipment and gets ready to go into the fight.

Now is a challenging time for all soldiers.  In the quiet hours, when your body wants to sleep but your mind says no, you think.  Are you ready for the unknown ahead?  All soldiers ask themselves this question, even if they are veterans.  Each tour means a different unit and a different position in the rank structure.  Each time the responsibility increases.  You can’t be just physically agile; you must be mentally agile when you go into a war zone.

Days get longer, and life becomes one of intense vigilance followed by sleep and boredom.  Past times become trying to cool off after a mission.  Eighty pounds of equipment in the desert heat takes whatever excess weight you had off, even though you eat well in the dining facility.  The air smells of dust and sweat.  Email and mail offer touch backs to the family.  Lots of well wishers, and you are grateful that you have good family and friends back home. 

You are on patrol, when suddenly the vehicle in front of yours explodes.  Training takes over, as in the next few minutes you try to clear the confusion of the situation and find the enemy.  Your fellow soldiers react well, dealing with the wounded and setting up defensive positions.  You know the two soldiers who are injured.  How did they survive that explosion, you wonder.  Might have something to do with all that equipment.

You feel something strike your chest.  You don’t know what it is, but your senses are alive and you locate a sniper.  Later you will find that the armored vest you wear just saved your life.

Close with the enemy.  You have been taught this and your leadership kicks in.  You fire back and start to maneuver.  The rifle sounds like a cap gun and sweat is running freely down your face, even over your goggles.  Soldiers are shouting as they move as a team.  Your heart is pounding, but those hours and hours of training and kicking in.

The fight is over, almost as quickly as it started.  Two enemy dead, the rest have fled.  The sergeant takes the team back, and you return to cantonment.  Much later, after debriefings and chow, you sit and think.  Maybe you shake as well.  You knew the soldiers who were medivaced away, it could have been you.  The thought doesn’t bother you, but you decide that when you email your wife this evening, you might not mention this poignant point.  She will know that the unit took casualties; she doesn’t need to know that it was the vehicle next to yours.

Christmas comes.  What a lonely time to be in the desert.  Within the compound, some Christmas lights are up, and music is playing.  It only serves to remind you that you are not home, and that you won’t see your child opening the presents.  This you will remember all the rest of your life.

Your tour in the combat zone is over, and it is time to go home.  You want to go home, but there is uneasiness about it.  Your unit will not be returning home with everyone that went to war with you.  You know six of the dead personally.  Their passing brought a profound sadness over the unit, but stoically the unit bounces back.  It had no choice.  You have been away for a year, and have missed a lot.  Despite the uneasiness, you want to go home.  At least it won’t be 120 degrees in the daytime at home.

People walk up to you in the airport and say thank you.  You are embarrassed, but appreciative of the thoughts and well wishes.  Your wife looks great, and so does your child.  They are beaming when you see them and tears flow easily down your face.  Life is good and it is time to unwind.

Three months late, life is getting heptic again.  You are in a military school, trying to get your education while you are at home.  Your unit will redeploy back into the war fight in another nine months.  During that time you have to train new members (there are many), get issued newer equipment and learn how to use it well in combat.  You’ve been promoted, and now you have added responsibility for the training of others.  Your wife is pregnant with your second child.  The budget will be more challenged.  You might not be home for the second child’s birth.

Your sense of appreciation is heightened.  Your bonds with the military grow.  In the quiet of the evening you think back to your comrades in the desert.  You think of the civilians and the suffering, your mind does not dwell on that, as those are unpleasant thoughts, and you will deal with them on your own time.  Your wife talked to you about the war.  She is not happy.  You try not to dwell on that either.  Your fellow soldiers and fellow leaders all have the same sets of issues, and they all serve well.  Going where they are asked to go without questions, to do the nation’s business.  You are not in the game of politics.  That is for others to worry about.  Your life is already filled to the brim with challenges.  Get ready for war, and get the family and your fellow soldiers ready to.

Your family looks up to you, as do your soldiers.  You are an NCO now, charged with training and taking care of your men.  Now you do the 6am physical fitness formations with zeal, because you have to lead by example.  Your body aches easier, but you know more about taking care of yourself than you did several years ago when you weren’t a soldier.  There are opportunities for getting out of the service.  The skills and leadership you have acquired are appreciated by industry and the pay is much better, so are the hours.  You think your family might be happier if you did this, but you don’t.  Soldiering is an affair of the heart, as is leadership, and you are Army Strong.

America loves its soldiers.  They represent the spirit that built this great land, and they keep us safe.  America hates war, and wishes its politicians would try some diplomacy with diplomats for a change, but we love our soldiers.

Politicians love our soldiers as well, especially in war.  Hug a baby and shake the hand of a soldier.  In peace one might question why we pay soldiers and why we have them, but in war they are loved and honored.  The soldier however, seeks peace.

The soldier is the ultimate bill payer, the soldier and his family.  He goes where he is told, and does the mission he is asked to the best of his ability, no matter what the risk.  He pays in blood sweat and tears.  He represents America, and often his presence inspires hope in the down trodden.  He does his job with commitment and compassion, hoping that he might return home to see his family.

His family pays too.  The separations, the worries, the constant moves and the challenges of raising a family and making ends meet while the soldier is away.  Sometimes the strain is too strong, and the family that he loves seeks another way. 

Soldiering is a thing of the heart.  Our Army is all volunteer.  It is filled with our sons and daughters, all trying to do their duty as they understand it.  They sacrifice much, and pay the price for our political blunders.  Hearts can break, but not our soldiers.  Love them, for they are deserving of our love.