Thank You

To each and every veteran who served or is still serving.

I can remember in December of 1997 when I drove off from Ft. Bragg, NC. While there was a brisk chill in the North Carolina air, I was flush with excitement as I was moving back to Texas to start my path to financial independence, which at that moment, being a bit disgruntled with the Army, seemed to be the answer to all.

Since then, I've realized that there are certain things one learns while serving that are lost on lots of folks out here. Loyalty, Duty, Honor, Country come to mind but those almost seem like textbook answers. Punctuality is a big one, no one seems to care if they are late, loyalty is another - a. workers don't seem to care about their jobs and - b. employers seem to feel folks are disposable.

I can certainly see how those feelings come about, employers will do / make the cuts necessary to maintain bottom line profits and personnel are quite expensive and knowing this, employees are always looking for the next "gig".

Camaraderie is another concept lost out here and I can tell you that the Army forces that on you, it is shoved down your throat from the time you hit basic training until you leave. You will conform to be on the island ( unit) or you will be voted off.  This breeds a certain relationship that can't be matched out here because you roll in at 0800 and roll out at 1700 and will never face the struggles or danger that we were placed in daily.

This is not the fault of those who have never served but it is something that the SMALL percentage of us that have understand and know intimately and for me, I miss it. I miss every whacko that I was forced to spend time with, to have to listen to the stories about their crazy families and to put up with every habit that irritated the shit out of me.  Why, because they had to listen and be irritated by me just as well.


There is no keeping up with the proverbial Joneses because I know what he or she makes by the rank on their collar and just to remind me, the Army Times publishes the pay scale quarterly. So break individuals down, remove any outside differences in personalities, make pay even across the board with the only way to increase that being  by promotion and you are going to find people who will work towards a common goal.

Some would say, well that's brainwashing and you end up with a bunch of robots. That could not be further from the truth, you see the Armed services remain a microcosm of society all Ethnicities, skin colors and socioeconomic backgrounds fall into line and put their personal differences aside to work for the greater good. But within that group are jokers, goths, Christians, athletes, hippies, free thinkers and rednecks. It all exists and it all, at least in the units I was in, works together. These soldiers are more adept at solving problems and making decisions than anything I've come across out there.  Their answer is "Roger That", then what's needed to be done is processed and executed, whereas out here the common refrain is "its not my job".

I try to discourage every service member who is not retiring to stay in, Don't get off the boat, you see it's hard out here, way harder than any rigors of combat or training because you don't have your Ranger Buddy to the left and right, that man who would share his water or food or ammo if your's was low. Your 6 is uncovered and you can feel it. What you have is employers who generally don't care and co workers you have nothing to talk about with and sadly, for the most part after almost 13 years of war a very apathetic public.

I miss sitting on my rucksack with sweat dripping off my nose and big dip of copenhagen in my lip after just moving long distances with the heaviest of rucks on the darkest of nights in the deepest of swamps. I miss the smell of JP4 on the tarmac, of sitting in the door of a Blackhawk while flying Nap of the Earth, the sound of static lines on the anchor line cable, the commands and sub commands of morning formations, the sound of gunfire, of knowing that you and your boys probably should not have survived that, whatever "that" was.  But its the people I miss the most.

 I learned more lessons for men that were in charge of me than any upbringing I ever had. I've learned more from my subordinates than any class I ever took at any school. As I have mentioned here before, I have truly walked among giants, men of the Ranger Creed and for this I will be forever greatful.

So again, to that small percentage who have served - Thank You.

Jurena..Out