Uniform thoughts

Today, in observance of Veteran's Day, I'm going to take the advice of a friend and fellow veteran. She makes a good case for the increasing isolation from mainstream society of the military community, and suggests that those of us who have and do wear the uniform reach out to those who haven't and try to share our experiences. My own experience in the service was a wonderful, strange, exhilarating and exhausting eleven years in the U.S. Navy. I was stationed on two ships, an overseas NATO base and a quiet, sleepy air training station in south Texas. A traveling soul couldn't hope for a better deal.

Even ten years after my time in uniform came to an end, my memories are vivid and varied. Shipboard life was cramped, often hot and smelly and difficult at the best of times. You stand watch for long periods, with all too little time in between. During long stretches at sea, backbreaking hard work is relieved only by periods of crushing boredom. You live with 30 other people in a space the size of a small apartment bedroom. Training is a constant; fire drills in suffocating and heavy gear, launching mock amphibious attacks on the sheep population of San Clemente Island, man-overboard drills and mass casualty drills were all a feature of the daily routine. Danger was constant. We trained as we did because fire was an ever present hazard, war was a not so distant probability, a shipmate could fall overboard at any time and ships are packed full of dangerous, volatile substances that a moment of inattention could turn into scores of injuries. We worked our asses off in an environment that would have most American workers screaming to OSHA that their management was trying to kill them that very day, AND WE LOVED IT!

Not all of us and not all of the time, but we did, really, deep down, love it. We keep in touch and greet as long lost friends shipmates we really didn't like that much at the time. We fondly recall this or that harrowing experience the way a star athlete recalls the big games of his career. We join associations for ships that have long since been made into razor blades and carburetors and we swap stories of liberty port revels that would cause riot police to be deployed if they happened at home. We saw things we never thought we would get to, traveled to places that maybe 1 percent of Americans will ever see, we learned, we grew and we developed skills and coping mechanisms that will serve us well for our entire lives. We realized the sublime pleasure of functioning as a part of something bigger and more important. We had a cause.

These reminisces are just one veteran's out of millions. We all have our stories, experiences and triumphs. If you've never worn the uniform, that's okay, not everyone does and we understand. If you've never sought out a veteran and asked about their experiences, you might want to try. I'm sure it will be entertaining, educational, interesting and occasionally bring a tear to the eye. To all my former shipmates, comrades, friends and to those still in uniform (like Mrs. Vagabond, who is in the NYNG), I hope your veterans day is happy, safe and peaceful.