Death first appeared in my life when I yelled, “Take cover!” Sirens wailing in the distance, flak vest slipping off my shoulder, I ran for the nearest bunker in the darkness. Barely 18 hours in-country. I hadn’t fully unpacked, butI knew the location of every bullet in my magazine, felt them digging into my chest. […]
Army
Posted inReflections
After 30 Years in the Military, an Army Colonel Asks: Who Am I Without the Uniform?
The morning after my retirement ceremony, I opened the closet and stared. For 30 years, the Army had made getting dressed simple. Although the look of the uniforms changed over my career, the functions remained the same: PT, duty, and dress. Now, I faced choices every morning. What belt matched? Footwear? None of it felt […]
Posted inNewsroom
A Veteran’s Search for Healing Led to an Ibogaine Trip and an Epiphany: ‘I’ve Got to Let It Go’
This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center. Marc Dervaes sat straight-backed in a circle of 10 men at a clinic in Tijuana, Mexico. The glass window behind him looked out on a pool deck and the Pacific Ocean beyond. Inside, sunglasses masked his eyes and a beard grew down to his chest. His blank […]
Posted inReflections
Curing Insomnia with Magic: How One Veteran Finally Got a Good Night’s Sleep
The ridiculous thing about war is that I remember being excited. For the first 90 days or so, I was constantly excited, and I don’t mean in a “joyous,” emotionally positive way. I mean excitement in the strictly physiological sense: raised heart rate, increased breathing, mind racing a mile a second. That state could describe […]
Posted inReflections
We Pined for the Comforts of Home. We Got Tube Socks and Old Candy for Christmas Instead
Green Berets lament Americans don’t understand the needs of modern soldiers after receiving tube socks and canned soup in Christmas care packages.
Posted inReflections
The Army Had a Crazy Thanksgiving Plan. I Had a Chainsaw
Soldier sent to ice sculpture school to create the Ranger scroll out of ice for the battalion Thanksgiving dinner.
Posted inReflections
Vietnam Was Scary Enough. Friday the 13th Added To Our Fear
Superstition blankets a platoon of soldiers as they hunt and fight the Viet Cong on Friday the 13th.
Posted inNewsroom
A Massive Fraud Probe, a Botched Investigation, and the Thousands of Soldiers Who Paid
Army investigation into military recruiting scandal led to thousands of veterans being titled by military.
Posted inReflections
I Was Exposed to 150 Blasts While Deployed to Iraq. My Brain Was Changed
After being exposed to IED blasts during an Iraq deployment, an Army chaplain’s assistant grapples with the effects of traumatic brain injuries and PTSD.
Posted inReflections
After a Tour in Iraq, His Dog Gave an Army Veteran Something to Live For
After returning from Iraq war, Army veteran adopts a dog to help his mental health
Posted inReflections
I Was No Longer an Army Nurse. As I Drove Off Base, I Was Ready to Learn Who I Could Be
An Army nurse finds freedom and a renewed sense of herself after leaving the service, where she was riddled with anxiety.
Posted inReflections
From O.J. Simpson to Paraguay, Trust and Respect Go a Long Way
DEI helps an Army officer become a better leader to his company and while on a peacekeeping mission in Paraguay.
