Memories of Military Life Can be Hard to Grasp

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Military news…

No, Air Force F-22 fighter pilots are not quitting en masse in protest of the Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, as one viral video on Twitter falsely claims, And even if they were, it would not spell doom for Taiwan.

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One of the many victims of the 9/11 terror attacks was the post-Cold War myth of American invincibility. Over the course of the past two decades, that myth was further worn away by cheap, hidden IEDs; a forever war and the mental and physical scars it left behind.

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My goal was to give the military community something to cheer for.” That’s from Sgt. 1st Class Elizabeth Marks, an Army combat medic who broke a world record while winning the gold medal in the women’s 100m backstroke at the 2020 Paralympic Games last week in Tokyo, Japan. The gold is just the latest in her five-medal collection.

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Short military news today. I am sharing another excerpt from my upcoming book, Signs of hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

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This is a partial list of the Table of Contents with chapter titles and description:

Mass Physicals in the Military

Twenty-five men standing in a row stark naked.

You May Never Know Who Your Friends Are in the Military

The Draftees didn’t like our Drill Sergeant

Draftees Were Totally Different

We invited them to our blanket parties.

Honors Marching Soldiers

My “Mean,” Drill Sergeant Put me in a Honors Marching unit.

The Military Food Wasn’t as Bad as Advertised

SOS ended up being one of my favorite meals.

Taking an Aim on Perfection

My adventures at the firing range.

Soldiers of the Month

My drill sergeant choose me for soldier of the month.

This is my Rifle; This is my Gun

Soldiers had to sleep with their rifles when they called it a gun.

Sometimes the Answers Are Available for You

We had to have a bed you could bounce a quarter off of.

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More chapters and description in the next post on Wednesday.

Come back and see more information on what will be in the book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

Better yet! Go to the top of this page and click on “Subscribe.” When you do all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

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Do you have memories of your military time? Was it all good?

If not… FEAR NOT!!

There are over 12,980 fellow veterans here who have your back.

If that isn’t enough, GET HELP!!

Here is toll free number to call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you. They will not hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Bad Memories Can Haunt People in The Military From Deployment

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Military news…

A disturbing number of Americans still believe the stereotype that veterans are ticking time bombs ready to explode at the first provocation, a new survey which shows that the stereotype of the unstable, violent veteran is still alive and well among U.S. adults. 23% of adults also said that PTSD is not treatable, which is far from the truth.

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A pregnant specialist in the Oregon National Guard is back home on Thursday after staying in her unit armory for an unclear amount of time while her battalion was gone for annual training this week. It is about the Guard failing to build “cohesive teams” and push “people first” the way the Army wants to do. The unit commander is still trying to figure out out how many nights she spent in the armory.

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“I could ask what color the sky is and even though we can all see the sky is blue, they’ll still need everyone and their lawyer to sign off on a statement confirming as much.” That’s what one Army public affairs officer said about the branch’s transparency problem. Haley writes about how Army commanders fail to recognize the importance of communicating with the public. That failure not only disrupts the branch’s connection to the people they serve, but also takes away its “information advantage” as one source said.

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It is getting very disturbing to me the things that are going on with national government.

There still is no plan on how to save the lives of interpreters of Afghanistan. They are going to be put out like last night’s trash if we do not protect them.

The latest is that the chief of staff said that, “We are working on it.” Well, the September 11th withdraw day for our military is coming closer and closer.

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I may be repeating myself here, but a thought about South Korea came to my head right now.

I had a day off from work, and a courier driver invited me to ride with him up to the DMZ zone. (Demilitarized zone.)

I was excited to do that. Never been up there. We headed out and along the way we came to some rice paddy fields. The driver told me,”Let’s have some fun.” I wasn’t sure what he meant, but we came up on a old man carrying two buckets on his shoulders with the help of a strap across his back.

My driver said, “Let’s give him a spin.” Again, I was too naive to know what was coming next. He told me to lean out of the jeep and tap the old man’s bucket on his left side.

I did that, and the man spun around and fell to the ground. I looked in horror, while my driver laughed his head off.

The old man was covered with the contents of his bucket which was human waste that they use to fertilize their crops.

I looked back to see him shaking his fists in anger. I got very angry with the driver and his thought was, “He’s only a gook!”

We finally got to the DMZ. The driver went off to deliver his packages. He left right on the edge of the DMZ. There were soldiers there with guns, and they were observing the other side of the DMZ, which is enemy territory.

They allowed me to use their binoculars to look across. I could see a North Korean soldier looking back at me.

I asked the soldier if I should wave. He said, “NO!” That guy would rather see you dead then to wave at you.

This excerpt from the book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life, and many more are in the book.

Be sure to come back to read more excerpts.

Better yet… Go to the top of this page and click on the subscribe button. When you do that all future posts will come directly to your inbox.

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Last bed check for this week…. How are you doing? Did you have some not so fun things happen while you were deployed?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12,195 fellow veterans here who have your back.

However, if your memories are getting the best of you, GET HELP!

Here is a toll free number to call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you. They will not hang up until they know you are OK.

Never let your bad memories overcome you!

1-800-273-8255 Option # 1 For texting..838255.

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Remember:


You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Memorial Day can be Very Special, but it Can also cause Bad Memories

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Today is Memorial Day. I want to honor all of our fallen brothers and sisters.

I watched the annual tribute to the fallen military on public Broadcasting last night.

One of the hosts was Gary Sinise. He is one of the huge heroes to all military. He spends hours and hours doing things to help them.

The program had me crying a lot. I usually don’t shed tears, but this was special. They covered all the wars. Many heroes, who spoke. Actors portrayed some of those who had passed on, but had a story to share.

There was one segment that honored nurses in the military. That really broke me up. My brother-in-law’s mother was a nurse in WWII. She was like a second mom to me.

She told me stories on how she held hands of those who were dying. A soldier asked her not to leave, because he didn’t want to die alone. She stayed with him until his last breath. She broke down crying when he passed.

During the Public Broadcast they played taps. That tore me up the most. I get emotional every time I hear it.

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There is a wonderful tribute for the military on YouTube. You search for “Tribute to Veterans.”

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Some articles for Memorial Day

Celebrating Memorial Day over a grill or a pool is one thing, but what about when you’re in the middle of a war? That’s what retired Army Col. Steve Miska experienced when he commanded Task Force Justice in Baghdad in 2007, at the height of sectarian violence during the Iraq War. Not only were Miska and his colleagues mourning the recent loss of their fellow American soldiers, but also the Iraqi interpreters and supporters who helped keep them all alive in a dangerous city. When you’re in the middle of it, remembering those who passed strengthens your resolve to keep fighting, Miska writes.

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“The day will have a few rough spots … we will all get emotional at some point,” an Army veteran told Haley Britzky in this excellent story about what Memorial Day really means to those who’ve served. Believe it or not, the holiday often involves plenty of laughter as well as tears. It will start with a fellow vet leaning over from their lawn chair and telling an old story that starts with ‘Remember that time in Ramadi/COP Najil/Anaconda/Dirty Tampa/Long Bihn…’ and we will laugh our asses off,” the former soldier said.

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How are you feeling on this Memorial Day? Have your memories been good, or do they haunt you?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 12,050 fellow veterans who have subscribed to this site, and they all have your back.

If the memories are getting the best of you. GET HELP!

There is a tool free number to call 24/7.

There are highly qualified counselors there to help you. They will not hang up until they know you are OK.

Never live with bad memories!

1-800-273-8255 Option # 1

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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+If you like what you see, please subscribe at the top of this page where it says, “subscribe.” When you do, all future posts will come directly to your inbox. Also, if you know some else who could benefit from this site, please let them know about it.