Thanks to all of you who have been joining us here. The response has been wonderful . We just past 2,900 new subscribers. That is a huge increase in one year. We only had 1,000 a year ago. Our goal for 2015, is to make it to 4,000.
Help us continue to grow by subscribing today if you haven’t already. Just click on the icon right after the title of this post to do that.
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We are listening! I asked you to subscribe if you like having posts about the military, and the response was very clear. The subscription rate doubled this week from the previous week. That is telling us you want more posts about the military, so they will keep coming, plus updates on the book, “Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.”
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+ Here is the latest update on the progress of the book, “Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.”
August 17, 2015
I met with two publishers, and four literary agents on August 10-13th. That is six chances to connect with someone who may get my book published. The two publishers rejected my proposal and said I needed an agent.
So the rest of my time I concentrated on Agents. I met with four of them. Three were very positive. Of the three positive meetings, I had two asking me to sent a proposal to the office. Both thought I had a incredibly good platform. (Connections.)
I will be sending those proposals this week. Then the waiting game starts up again. I am hopeful that one of those two will see the merits of a military book that reaches out to those suffering in the military.
I have added the following sections to the book to cover most everything that a military person may face:
- PTSD
- Deployment
- Domestic violence
- The spouses left behind
- Death in the families
- Basic training problems
- Foreign assignment stories
- Loneliness, fear, anxiety, depression, doubt, and the many other usual suspects
- Personal thoughts
- More
I will update you on the outcome of the two proposals sent to the agents.
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One of the chapters I wrote speaks about a stop-over we had when we were being shipped to Korea on the U.S.S Mitchell. It was Okinawa, Japan. I was a shy, naive 18 year old kid when we walked off the ship. What happened is the actual chapter out of the book:
Stop Over in Okinawa, Japan
On our way to Korea, on the U.S.S. Mitchell, we had an overnight stay in Okinawa, Japan. We were told we could go ashore, but to be careful about being lured into things we may not want to be part of.
Being and eighteen year old kid, I had no idea what they meant. I assumed you had to look out for thieves, and robbers.
When we got off the ship, people didn’t have to guess who we were. We all had on military uniforms. Apparently that was a signal to the natives to try to get whatever they could out of the soldiers. It was like we had a bulls eye on our backs to help them zero in on the targets.
I was with my buddies, and I was awe struck. This was my first time of being on a foreign soil. The people looked so different. They were speaking a strange language. We were the foreigners.
We were obviously the target, since everyone kept coming up to us to try to sell us something they thought was special and we needed it.
After we got through the maze of sellers, we came around a corner and saw the main street that was near the ship. I was in shock! It was wall to wall saloons, on both sides of the street.
Out in front of every saloon were girls waving at us to come to see them. These, I found out quickly, were the area prostitutes. I had never seen a prostitute before, so I was a little fearful of them. I didn’t know what to expect when I came near one.
They turned out to Okay people just trying to make a living like anyone else. I still stayed clear of them because I was a pretty shy guy.
One of my buddies wasn’t very shy, and he disappeared pretty quickly with one of the girls. I didn’t see him for a couple of hours. He was smiling big time when he came back. He wouldn’t tell us what happened, but even I had a pretty good picture in my mind.
I was able to taste Sake for the first time, and it burned my throat as it went down. But I felt like I was finally fitting in a little better with the other guys. (Not that I had to.)
Have you ever been in a situation where you felt you didn’t fit in? Were there times when you felt lost and alone?
In the military, this happens a lot. It is hard, at best to find a niche of friends. The soldiers are from all over the country. They have their own styles, and are used to their own type of conversations. Some love to cuss. Others would rather read a book than interact with others. There are the barrack clowns you sometimes hate, because they are doing things to make other people look silly. They often ended up being part of a blanket party I mentioned in another part of this book. (That is where some of the men throw a blanket over a guy and beat the tar out of him. He never knew who did it.)
I was one of those who wondered, “Can’t we all just get along?” I sometimes was called a wimp for stressing this, but I didn’t see any reason to make our time in the military one of fear and stress.
If you are having difficulty making friends in the military, or feel alone, take a giant step forward and get to know the soldiers around you. They very well could be just like you and are feeling alone, and an outcast. You may get turned away a few times, but in the long run you will build positive relationships with many of the fellow soldiers around you.
This could very true for all the veterans out there as well. Do you feel isolated? Do you feel like you have been left alone, and have no one to turn to?
The appendix of this book is loaded with places to get help. It covers every conceivable problem you may be facing. Use it daily. Keep this book near you to use as a reference to get help when you need it.
IWILL
Please do not go into hiding during your service to your country, or after you are discharged. Stay connected with those you made friends with during your time in the service. Have gathering times once a year to touch base, and catch up with each other. It will help relieve the tension, and stress you are enduring, and will bring back some positive times you had with your buddies.
Think About This
Isn’t it interesting how much better we feel when we surround ourselves with friends?
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I have 200 pages of others stories from the military, and thoughts on how to cope during your time there. I may share a chapter now and then to let you get the fell of the book.
Remember:
You are never alone.
You are never forsaken.
You are never unloved.
And above all…never, ever, give up,