One Memorable Labor Day

Labor Day! Ahhh, finally a day to relax from my military training. Being in Alabama, the weather was hot and humid, but the sun shone brightly and the skies were clear. We had one objective that day: sleep in and ... go swimming! After weeks of being up at 5 a.m. and having no free time to speak of, this holiday was looking good indeed.

Many of us skipped breakfast altogether because we wanted the extra sleep more than the food. It was well after the mess hall had closed that we slowly began our day. A holiday meant no training, which in turn meant lots of free time and laughter to be had. A picnic was planned for later in the day.

I had just finished showering and joined my "comrades" when the door flung open.

"Specialist Casey!" The drill sgt. had a way of being heard over our entire platoon. Everyone fell silent.

"Yes, drill seargent," I replied.

"The recruit on the roster for mess hall duty is sick...you are next on the list!"

'What rotten luck,' I thought to myself. Of all the days to not be off duty, it just had to be a holiday.

Trying to prolong the inevitable, I changed into my work uniform (fatigues) with no haste. I arrived at the mess hall just as breakfast was ending and reported to the officer in charge. He brought out a chart, showing me what the duties of the day would consist of. Mainly I would be responsible for clearing off all the dishes, running them through a large machine that rinsed them, followed by one that washed them, and a third that air dried them. When there were no dishes to do, I would be cleaning off the tables to make sure everything was in top shape for the next meal.

That, of course, was to be repeated three times until the evening meal was finished and everything clean. Thankfully I would have the company of a recruit from another platoon that would be sharing all of these duties with me. It would be better than talking to myself all day, or talking to the wall.

As the day wore on, my mood actually improved. Yes, my plans to enjoy the day with my friends at the lake were thwarted, but by the time the lunch meal had been nearly cleaned up, my partner and I were both talking and laughing non-stop.

When the supper meal was complete and I was cleaning off dishes, I realized what a toll my apron had bore from that day of "dish duty." With a chuckle, I looked at the other recruit helping me and she looked at me. Nodding my head, I affirmed the truth..."How fitting this has been. You and I have truly labored this Labor Day!