In the Military there Are Many Battles We Face, But Loneliness is the Hardest.

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Military news…

Sailors across Navy say they’re undermanned, overworked and using ‘Band Aids’ to get underway

Crews described “operating in unsafe conditions, with safety measures circumvented or disregarded.”

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Marine accused of selling hundreds of fake vaccine cards

He allegedly helped create and distribute at least 300 fake vaccine records.

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5 sailors accused of leaking video of Navy carrier jet crash

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National Guard deploys for new emergency: Teacher shortages

Team USA bobsled coach, an Army officer, relives Olympic glory through his athletes’ medals.

Army Capt. Michael Kohn, head coach of the U.S. Olympic bobsled team, poses in this undated photo with monobob silver medalist Elana Meyers Taylor in Beijing.

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Here is another excerpt from my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.


Loneliness Sucks the Life Out of You

I have written about loneliness already in this book, but I think one of the biggest battles a person in the military may battle is the loneliness that creeps up on them.

Many civilians do not understand how you can be lonely when you have so many other soldiers around you.

It may be hard to comprehend, but all those other soldiers are from all over the country, and do not relate to your needs of needing to connect with your home. They all have their own worlds of loneliness from not hearing from their own loved ones.

I think the worst time of my own loneliness was while I was stationed in Korea. We were stationed on a small base called Camp Red Cloud. There weren’t a lot of soldiers there. I was with the Army Security Agency, and we were there to help keep the peace plus monitor the radio waves to make sure there were no breaches of security.

Being there made me really feel isolated. I was in a foreign country that didn’t speak my language.

That was only part of it. We realized once we settled in to our duties that the people there didn’t want us to be there. We heard rumors about people throwing rocks at the military trucks as they drove from one place to the next. We were protecting them from North Korea, and they wanted us to leave. Didn’t make sense to me, and I am sure it didn’t make sense to any of you who have gone through the same thing.

My task was to be stationed on top of a high hill-they were all numbered- outside of the camp monitoring the radio waves for breaches of security. My hill was hill 468. Talk about being isolated. It was just one person, alone on top of that hill for twelve hour shifts. I was alone inside a deuce and a half ton truck that was full of radio equipment.

The silence was deafening! Just a slight scratch on the roof of the truck had you grabbing your rifle and aiming it at the door. We had antennas attached to the roof to help us get good reception, and the wind often caused the antennas to rub against the roof of the truck. It sounded like someone was on the roof.

You had to be tough. You couldn’t call down to the camp and ask someone to come up. The rest of them had to go through the same things and they knew exactly why you would be calling. No sissy people allowed!!

During the twelve hours shifts you had free time to think, and I mean deep thinking. It wasn’t good to have such long quite times. You thought about home. You thought about that girlfriend waiting for you. You thought about the fun times you were missing, such as fishing in the lake near the farm where I grew up.

So, I know what loneliness is all about. I know what you each have gone through. I feel your pain.

Loneliness is something we allow to happen. We let it creep into our system like the plague. We don’t fight it enough to make it go away.

After about a month of battling the loneliness in Korea I came up with some ideas to conquer loneliness, and survive. Hopefully it will help you as well, if you are deployed or even a veteran back in civilian life:

  • Write a journal. Don’t worry about what to write, just write. I wrote about some fun times I had in high school. I wrote about the biggest fish I ever caught as a youngster. I even wrote about being bullied in grade school. By putting down the good and the bad, I was able to release my feelings down on paper. It was like I was having a session with a counselor, only on paper.
  • I became an avid reader. Reading takes you into another world. A world you become a part of. You feel the pain; the happiness, and the fear the characters go through. They become family and you are guided through their lives in in a way you can learn about coping in your own life.
  • Send letters home. I know many of you now have SKYP and many other ways to communicate, but the written word seems so much more personal to me. Sending a letter to your family is a direct connection that I can almost guarantee you they will cherish, and keep forever.

Among the books I read was the Bible. I read it every day. I found comfort through many of the passages. I recommend Psalms, Isaiah, Jerimiah, Genesis, and Proverbs from the Old Testament and all of the New Testament.

Don’t let loneliness control your life. Take steps to rid the darkness that it can cause in your life. God is always there for you. He loves you. He even loves me warts and all.

IWILL

Loneliness is a direct cause of depression, and sadness. Try to fill your life with things you enjoy. Don’t sit and think of negative things. Don’t hide from the world where you are stationed overseas. Find things to fill your day that will change your attitude, and give you hope.  

Think about this

Isn’t it great that the more we communicate the happier we are?

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Checking in on you…How are you doing? Are you struggling with memories?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 13,900 fellow veterans here who have your back.

If you are battling mentally, because of your love for others, but it isn’t working, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will no 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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There is a tear in My beer Since You Left me My Dear

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Military news…

Biden says he is ‘rejecting’ the military report outlining the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal

When asked if if the report’s conclusions and accounts were false, Biden said he was “rejecting them.”

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Airman gets general to step in so he can finally take parental leave

“Imagine being in a position to give your commander paperwork.”

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Paul Douglas went to Marine boot camp at 50. Then he earned a Bronze Star and 2 Purple Hearts in WWII.

When he was wounded, he took off his rank insignia so he wouldn’t receive special attention.

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Here is another excerpt from myupcoming book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

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There’s a Tear in My Beer Since You Left Me My Dear

The title for this chapter is actually some lyrics from a Country Western song. Country Western songs always tell a story, and unfortunately one person dropping the other person like a rock, is an all too common story in the military.

One of the hardest things for a soldier to go through is receiving what they call a, “Dear John Letter.” This is a letter where their significant other is telling them they no longer love them and have moved on to someone else.

I certainly went through that while I was in Korea. I personally got a letter from a girl that I was very much in love with that said her parents felt I wasn’t good enough for her. So this was a double whammy. I lost my true love at the time, and I was told I wasn’t good enough.

This was devastating to me. I loved this girl so much I had the picture of her she sent me. I had a local painter paint an eight by ten size painting of her that I kept by my cot to look at every day. After I got the letter and stop having pity parties for myself, I put the picture in my trunk I kept at the foot of my cot. I put it in the bottom part so I wouldn’t be able to see it unless I tried to find it.

This “tragedy” led me to having some hard times with drinking. I thought that drinking would get my mind off of what was happening to me. The opposite happened. The more I drank the sadder I got. Drinking brought out my inner feelings of self-doubt, anxiety, failure, and rejection.

After a month or so of that, I turned to prayer, and God helped me get back on the right track. I bought a Bible, and read it every day. It was my connection to finding the courage to go on and be a productive person again.

I am sure some of you faced that while you have been in the military. There is not a way to get around the pain of facing it, but please realize that there is always someone who loves you very much no matter what happens on this not so friendly planet. God will be there for you. He will wipe away the tears, and give you comfort.

He did it for me, and I went on to getting married and having three wonderful children. I now also have seven grandchildren.

I look back on what I had to go through in Korea often. Believe it or not, I thank God for the storms I had to face while there. I was beaten up mentally several times, but I came out a much stronger person because of it.

IWILL

During your time in the military, there may be times of disappointment and hurt. Much of that can be avoided if you turn all your worries and hurt over to God. Many times life is too much of a burden to carry. If you let God guide you through the trenches of life, you will be able to withstand all the garbage that seems to come up.

Think about This

Isn’t it interesting that you can’t have a positive life and a negative mind?

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Checking in on you…How are you doing? Are you struggling with memories?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 13,870 fellow veterans here who have your back.

If you are battling mentally, because of your love for others, but it isn’t working, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will no hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255.

______________________________________________________________

+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.

Why do we Need the Bible?

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We have a huge announcement to make. The book “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World,” is now in eBook form.  That’s not all! We just lowered the price of the eBook from $4.99 to $2.99! This won’t last very long. Check it out by clicking on the Amazon icon on the right. You can also buy it at any eBook outlets! You can order the hard copy at the Amazon site there as well.

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Be sure to check out the book trailer for “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World.” It is on the right side right below the Amazon icon. It gives you a clear picture of what the book is about.

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 Why do we need the Bible? It is just a book. It has thousands of pages. It is sometimes hard to read.  Why bother?

I thought that many years ago. As a matter of fact my grandmother gave me a beautiful Bible. However, I never read it much because I was afraid I was going to tear the pages, and soil it.

I’m sure that is not what my grandmother had in mind at all. She probably wanted to it look worn, and have many dog ears in it.

I have learned that the Bible is full of living water. The words flow out like a river of love that refreshes us each day. It give us the armor we need to survive as Christians.

Unlike some people who have put their Bible up in the attic, which only give the rats some paper for their nest, we should read the Bible every day.

I realize this sounds a little harsh, but I was guilty of doing that with my grandmother’s Bible she gave me.

I don’t have anymore excuses. I know how important the Bible is for our daily plans in life.

What about you? Do you know where your Bible is? Do you read it often?

The Words from the Bible should be “music to our ears,” and give us hope in a not so friendly world.

Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!