Topic: Reflections

‘Lead, Follow, or Get out of the Way’–We Really Did Live That Way.
Both aircraft exploded. ... Tony, Tom, and Will, Tony’s student, touched the hand of God, and chaos shoved itself into the lives of everyone they knew.

A Close Encounter With a Little Red Car and an Accusation of Attempted Murder
We were now on the lam. Fugitives at large. Wanted for attempted murder. We pictured our faces on wanted posters across the country.

This Is What We Do in America. We Pause. We Forget. Then We Begin the Next War.
The divorces, wars, and military bases blurred together. In Afghanistan and Iraq, I wasn’t surprised to see suicide watch posters everywhere.

She Never Told Me Why She Took Me Under Her Wing, But I Would Have Been Lost Without Her
Mama Wherry kept me grounded. I credit her mentorship for creating the solid foundation upon which I built my career and how I lead and mentor sailors.

If There Was No Iwo Jima Airfield, I’d Have Been on My Knees Praying
We stop in darkness; as engines whine into silence, our senior officer calls out, "Leave everything except headgear and weapons." Something is very wrong.

A Chunk of My Life Was Taken From Me. You Could Say I Had a Bad Attitude.
Dealing with still-drunk combatants who often outranked me and wanted a second round with the bouncer was never easy.

It’s Every Young Marine’s Dream. But I Don’t Like This Story.
I always took crap for wearing a KA-BAR knife on the left front strap of my battle harness. I think most guys were jealous they hadn’t done it first.

I Expected to Miss Him When He Deployed. Then There Were the Things That Snuck Up on Me.
I missed being a parent with him. Not all the crappy parts—the disciplining, nose wiping, puke cleaning, lunch packing. But I missed the funny parts.

You Don’t Need to Thank Me for My Service. I Needed It More Than It Needed Me.
I went from a world of chaos, poverty, and dysfunction to one of order, discipline, and regular meals. The Navy gave me the structure and consistency I needed.