A soldier who made it

Not all veterans are homeless, have post traumatic stress disorder or are in need of the services offered by the Veteran’s Administration.

Fortunately.

I’m thinking of a soldier who fought in the Persian Gulf War. His job in the Gulf was to find land mines for removal by other specialists.

The U.S. Army gave him a high-tech tool for finding the mines. It was a telescoping, 8-foot-long pole. Correct use of this tool meant taking it, snapping it open until it extended to its full length, and then probing the sand at a 45-degree angle for mines.

On finding a mine, he was supposed to draw a small icon on a map. He ran out of military approved icons, and started to use symbols from a game that was popular at the time, Dungeons and Dragons. His commanding officer thought he was a genius.

There are other stories he shared with me.

Like the time he was lying down on the cot in his tent, which was situated fairly close to the division’s ammo dump. I don’t remember how the dump blew up; I do remember him telling me that a hubcap tore a hole in the side of the tent and just missed him as it exited his side of the tent about 2 inches above his nose.

I also remember that another soldier snapped a picture of him reading by the light of a burning oil well.

The thing I remember best was getting a letter from him saying he was safe, well, and on his way home. He said it would be a few days before he was stateside, so I didn't know exactly when he would be home.

Then I pulled up in our driveway several days later. It was a nice summer day, lots of sun, and a soldier in full dress was sitting at my picnic table drinking a beer he had fished out of his duffle bag.

I was very glad to see my son again.

Brian has since gone on to become the director of the IT department for the county in which he lives, in California. After doing that job for several years he wanted a change, so for the past 2 years he’s been studying to be a paramedic.

He called last night and we talked for almost an hour. He has three more shifts to clear on his internship, some busy work to take care of, and then he’ll be a full-fledged paramedic. Brian has chosen to be the guy flying around on air ambulances.

It occurred to that one doesn't wish a veteran a “happy” Veteran’s Day, but I closed our conversation by telling him I was proud of his service and of him.

He thanked me and rung off.