Eighteen Years in the Army
January 13, 1987 a young, immature Joe Phillips boarded a plane to Atlanta, Georgia, then a bus from there to Fort Benning, home of the Infantry. The level of tension in my life over the next three months has never been duplicated since. From 4 AM to 11 PM non-stop furious activity, much of which was more than I thought I was capable of doing. I was wrong. I learned that the mind can take the body much further than the body thinks it can go.
It was a very strange time. I'll never forget the living oxymoron of drill sergeants marching us to chapel on Sunday mornings, making us chant cadences like "Somebody, anybody start up a war. I want to go to El Salvador." "Shoot somebody, Kill somebody!" or even worse. I never thought I would stay in the Army more than my initial tour of 3 years. It grated on me, but I learned the spirit can endure a lot more than we think it can.
There wasn't a lot about that initial three years that could have motivated me to consider staying in. There was a lot of crassness, uncouth behavior, and more mud, rain, snow, and bugs than I ever want to see again up close and personal. There were positive moments as well, but sometimes few and far between. Toward the end of my tour, I heard about the Defense Language Institute and decided to try for that. I got in and stayed in the army with hopes of learning another language.
I was afraid at first. I didn't know if I had what it takes to learn something so complex at the rigorous pace demanded by the institute. Many people, I heard, simply couldn't take it, and went back to their previous jobs quickly. I learned, however, that the mind can do a lot more than we might think.
Eighteen years later I contemplate the changes time has wrought in me. I am a completely different person and, for the most part, I am grateful. That which I thought I would only be able to tolerate for a short time, which I thought to be diametrically opposed to my view of the world, has done me much good. It would appear that the telescopic view from the beginning doesn't represent the end very well and that regardless of the strange turns life takes, we can always learn from them.
It was a very strange time. I'll never forget the living oxymoron of drill sergeants marching us to chapel on Sunday mornings, making us chant cadences like "Somebody, anybody start up a war. I want to go to El Salvador." "Shoot somebody, Kill somebody!" or even worse. I never thought I would stay in the Army more than my initial tour of 3 years. It grated on me, but I learned the spirit can endure a lot more than we think it can.
There wasn't a lot about that initial three years that could have motivated me to consider staying in. There was a lot of crassness, uncouth behavior, and more mud, rain, snow, and bugs than I ever want to see again up close and personal. There were positive moments as well, but sometimes few and far between. Toward the end of my tour, I heard about the Defense Language Institute and decided to try for that. I got in and stayed in the army with hopes of learning another language.
I was afraid at first. I didn't know if I had what it takes to learn something so complex at the rigorous pace demanded by the institute. Many people, I heard, simply couldn't take it, and went back to their previous jobs quickly. I learned, however, that the mind can do a lot more than we might think.
Eighteen years later I contemplate the changes time has wrought in me. I am a completely different person and, for the most part, I am grateful. That which I thought I would only be able to tolerate for a short time, which I thought to be diametrically opposed to my view of the world, has done me much good. It would appear that the telescopic view from the beginning doesn't represent the end very well and that regardless of the strange turns life takes, we can always learn from them.
posted by G.I. Joe | 1:03 AM
1 Comments:
Then maybe my mind can endure more than I think it can as well.
Post a Comment
<< Home