It may seem like a a cliche that we have heard constantly since 9/11. Some think it’s overused, some people don’t even think twice about it, but to some, this thank you does have value. It has meaning. It is recognition of a young person’s decision to step up into the unknown, to see if they have what it takes to serve in the armed forces. There are many sacrafices made by our young men and woman that have made the decisions to step up and serve. When in service, the definition of “normal” changes.
When you are from a military family where your father, sister, brother in law, niece all served and when you marry into a military family where your Lt. Col Vietnam Vet Ranger qualified father in law is closing out his military career, this is normal.
When you go through boot camp with wake up call is at 4:45, run miles to the rifle ranges before dawn, throw live hand granades and learn about the aweful effects of military grade chemical weapons, this is normal.
When you are the first man in the “stick” at Ft. Benning Airborne school and the jump master tells you to “stand in the door” and your hands are holding on to the outside of a C130 aircraft flying at 150 MPH and the jump master yells “Green Light, GO”, and you jump out of a perfectly good airplane. This is normal.
When you join the CIA at 21 and the vast majority of communications officers are former military and you move 11 times in 12 years, this is normal.
When you find yourself on the streets of Dubai literally chasing down the bad guys who are trying to do harm this this nation, this is “normal”.
When you find yourself travelling to Havanna, Cuba, at a time when we had high assurances that the embassy had been compromised, and I am carrying top secret crypto key in my front pockets and $10,000 cash in my rear pockets, this is normal.
And finally and sadly, when you work daily with a survivor of the Tehran, Iran hostage crisis and you see the effects of 444 days in captivity, and you learn years later that this man committed suicide, very sadly, this is normal.
To all of the generations that have served this great country, military, civilian, war time, peace time as well as that 18 year old young man or woman who has decided to step up and serve in the military, I say to you all, thank you for your service…..
Enough of the walk down memory lane, it was time to go to work.
Disclaimer given, Pledge of Allegiance performed, warm up jog to parking lot.
SSH * 20
Sir Fazio Arm Circles * 10, Forward and Reverse
Good Morning – Crimson Style
Calf Stretch
Control Freak Merkins
Mountain Climbers
PAX set up in a tight group of four columns and turned over to @Dirty Bomb for a quarter mile group run singing military cadence.
Thang 1
Dora 1 – 2 – 3
Partner up for 100 merkins, 200 LBCs, 300 squats
Other partner runs the pickle
Thang 2
4 man squad performs 1/2 court and full court bear crawls, sprint back to the start line and performs four man box merkins * 5
Dirty Bomb returns the tropps to the upper parking lot singing more military cadence.
Dirty Bomb calls variety of Mary exercises.
Announcements, Prayers and Praises
RESPECT week continues all week.
Orphan leading group to Burgaw this weekend. Details on Slack
Pinehurt – F3 Sandhills Convergence this Saturday – See Kitty for details
NMS
Many thanks to Dirty Bomb for helping YHC on the Co-Q. Really solid job DB.
Super thanks to all vets present for their service. WWW, Theismann, Goose, Dirty Bomb. Sincere apologies if I missed any.
Many thanks to the PAX for allowing YHC to walk down memory lane for a bit. It was a honor to lead such HIMs in CARPEX.
2nf F called for Starbucks. Coffee for all, courtesy of Starbucks.