Remembering 9/11

Most of us remember where we were and what we were doing when we found out about an airplane crashing into the World Trade Center.  I was working a temp to hire accounting job in Daytona Beach, Florida.  A coworker had his radio on and was talking to a friend of his on the phone.  His friend told him a plane had just crashed into the tower and he immediately passed the information on to me.  I remember the song that was playing on the radio, it was Nickelback's "How You Remind Me".  He hung up and we both tried to figure out how such a crazy accident could happen?  Then a few minutes later he got another call from the same friend informing him that another plane had crashed into the second tower.  All theories we had of student pilots went out the window, we knew there was a lot more to it.  The next few weeks were a news filled haze with images that will never leave any of our minds.  There's no need to replay the footage even though of course they will, those pictures, stories, struggles, sacrifices, and the way this country came together will be permanently burned into the minds of those of us who lived through that time in our country's history. A lot of people turned to God, which of course in my view was the best answer to all of the pain caused by these terrorists.  For the first time in a long time politics were laid aside, we still had Democrats and Republicans of course, but they were all unified in the decision following that day to pursue these terrorists until they were brought to justice "Dead or Alive!" 

It took a few weeks to seep in to my brain what I really wanted to do.  I didn't feel right sitting behind a desk pounding computer keys.  I was feeling more and more like there was something more I could be doing.  Balancing books for a timeshare company was not doing anything for me, I felt like I should be doing something to help our country.  I'm not saying I wanted to go to war, but I did feel it was time to serve my country and actually do something about that feeling inside, I think it's called patriotism.  I wanted to join the Armed Services, so I tried the Air Force first.  I weighed 270 pounds at the time.  I'm 6 foot 6 inches tall, but that was way too fat according to their standards.  They told me I should try the army so that's where I headed next and have stayed for the past ten years.  I got down to 212 in basic, and was stationed in Germany after completing AIT.  In a foreign country with my wife, just four short months go by and we're informed that my unit will deploy to Kuwait within a few months.  On the day we went to the airport to fly into Kuwait we were put on standby due to the "Shock and Awe" campaign.  We were held in Rhein Mein for a day and then flew to a base in Italy  where again we were held over a couple of days.  One jet flying out after another set off the skies at night with a loud roar and bright flames from the turbo thrusters.  These guys were loaded for bear with missiles anywhere they could fit them!  It was an amazing sight to see.  I know there's a lot of banter about how the different branches of the military treat each other poorly or there's some sense of one branch thinking they are better than another, but I can tell you firsthand that when times are tough and we are at war, I don't care if the guy that's fighting with me is a soldier, marine, airmen, or whatever else you want to call him, as long as he's an American! 

I didn't plan on going to war, but I did want to do something to serve my country.  9/11 stirred new found patriotism in our nation, a common bond between all of us forged that we knew we were going to get through this, and come back better than ever.  It's been ten years since that life changing moment.  I don't regret joining the Army.  I know it's been a huge sacrifice for my wife, but I know she doesn't regret it for a minute either.  She married me when I was still going to college to become an accountant.  That used to be my dream and who knows, it might be what I go back to after I get out of the military.  I thank her so much for the sacrifices she made by allowing me to pursue a career serving my country.  I know it's been said so much it's bound to sound cliche, but it is so true: the toughest job in the military is that of the military spouse.  Just try to listen to Lonestar's version of "I'm Already There" with the messages from home and you'll see what I mean.  Honey, if you read this, I just want you to know that I love you so much and I really appreciate all of the sacrifices you've made over the last ten years!