I’ve often said that if someone needs material for a speech, ask a veteran. Vets have material for any genre possible … drama, comedy, horror, adventure, mystery … you name it!
As Veterans Day came and passed, I spent time thinking of those who have served and the sacrifices they’ve made in order to provide, and defend, the freedoms we have today.
I also reflected on experiences I’ve had throughout my own military career. Many of my experiences have been quite mundane, but there were more than a few that I will likely never forget..
One of those memories involved training at what was known as Fort Eisenhower (formerly called Fort Gordon), Georgia. For those who are unfamiliar with Fort Eisenhower, it is the US Army’s main facility for training anything communications related … anything from cable, to radio, to satellite, to computers, or anything else someone could imagine.
And, anyone who has ever been in the Army knows that all trainees, at every location, march everywhere! Cadre will make the series of calls of “Fall in! Cover! Right, face! Forward, march!” and off they go at a fairly normal pace, on the same foot, at the same time, in a very orderly unit known as a “formation” with the cadre member calling some form of left, left, left, right, left. Over time, it becomes quite mundane.
Yet, along with these commands, the Drill Sergeant, or unit leader, will make other calls depending on where the group is headed. For instance, if the unit leader wants the formation to turn left or turn right while in motion, the calls are “Column left, march” or “Column right, march”.
When these directions are called, those in front will make the appropriate turn and pick up a “half step”, or march in a forward direction at half speed until the entire formation has made the turn. When that turn is completed, the unit leader calls, “Forward, march!” and the formation would return to normal speed.
As mentioned, over time these events were pretty mundane, until one day, something happened. As we made the turn, and were still at the “half step”, something to my left caught my eye. As I tried to glance, without being obvious, I realized the soldier next to me was shaking his head ever so slightly each time he stepped with his left foot. For a moment I thought, “Cool! This dude is his own bobblehead!”
That was, of course until I realized the soldier behind him was making fun of the poor guy! Private John McDoulett had always been our “class clown”, and he too thought this half-stepping bobblehead was quite the sight! Not only was McDoulett half-stepping with the rest of us, but he had a huge grin painted across his face, mimicking the same motion as he too stepped in his left foot.
This was too much for me and my military bearing! I found myself laughing to the point of tears! Fortunately neither of us got in trouble for it! I’m not even sure if our Drill Sergeant had taken notice, but I could only imagine what this looked like from an outsiders perspective! This poor soul was likely unaware of his body mechanics, his head was shaking with each step, the guy behind whose parody was spot on, and the soldier to his right laughing at the wrong time! I’m sure it was a sight to see!
Not only that, I can only imagine what was going through this poor soldiers mind, likely unaware of the clown behind him, idiot to his right laughing hysterically, wondering if he too would be let in on this joke!
Unless the poor man happens to be reading this blog, I’m almost positive he never was!