Arriving into Iraqi airspace, I am met by a gripping fear. It is at the edge of my being, waiting. The passengers are instructed to don the Kevlar helmet and flak vest. Shit just got real. This is the real deal and we’re not in Kansas anymore. Keep flying, you noisy beast of an aircraft. … Read more
A soft, vulnerable caterpillar sleeps inside walls for protection from predators. I don’t sleep in my cocoon. I can’t. To sleep here is an open invitation for a free meal. The bullet-proof glass of my cocoon are windows into this foreign land where these hungry predators are said to lurk everywhere. And maybe, this is … Read more
I could see the shadow of the CH-60 along the sand, cutting through what seemed a vast nothingness. The two hour flight left me in silence, encapsulated in the drone of rotor blades snapping against the desert air. I was about to play the riskiest hand of poker ever, requesting a Court Martial over Captain’s … Read more
When I came home from the Army, there was so many places that I wanted to visit. I had been gone for ten years, and even though I had come home on leave to visit my family throughout the years, the visits always seemed short and I never seemed to have time to do the … Read more
The effects of the head cold seemed minimal: slightly runny nose, mild congestion. Both could be cured with Afrin, which I used several times before the mission brief. The flight lead that evening was Rhory “Hoser” Draeger, the squadron weapons office. He was thorough and demanding, with a heavy sense of purpose and a light … Read more
Just after midnight, the team and I positioned ourselves along a multi-story apartment wall on a desolate intersection in northern Baghdad. Within a matter of seconds, we dismounted and lined up into our stack. We immediately had breaching charges placed on the wooden door of our target house. Intel believed the space to be an … Read more
“And one for teamwork!,” bellowed SSgt* Perez (cadre member)**. “Hoo-yah***, sergeant!,” they yelled. A line of young airmen, all of them in the front leaning rest, completed one more push-up. They were wearing brown shirts and tiny black shorts, sweating in the hot Texas sun. “And one for the fallen!” “Hoo-yah!” Suddenly, I woke up, … Read more
When I first arrived to my command in the Navy, I made a terrible mistake. I explained to one of my superiors that I had construction skills from work I did prior to enlisting, and as a result, I was immediately put in charge of fixing anything and everything that broke in my department. I … Read more
I did not have a home-coming. For all intents and purposes I’m still there…. I never left. I was cheated of the complete combat experience… I lived. I was not even wounded. I am sick of being called a hero. I’m no hero. I made it home. I feel that I failed those who did … Read more
People say “The truth shall set you free.” The truth is It can’t. It can be dangerous And sometimes deadly. The truth is People have tried to kill me Sometimes they came really close. The truth is Getting shot at for the first time is scary By the tenth time it’s kind of fun. You … Read more