Lessons I've Learned

Before I leave for recruit training I'd like to share some things that I've learned along my journey before I've even gone to boot camp. Some I learned through the process, some I learned outside of it, but strongly apply. Some are big, some are small, and some are downright trivial. Some are amusing, some I think are important and want to impart on others. 

1. Always tell the truth exactly and simply, even if it is uncomfortable. 

At MEPS, one Gunnery Sergeant asked us if we understood a document we read. We all said yes, and were then grilled on it and chastised because we did not actually understand it fully, so the correct answer was NO. I took this simple lesson to heart. Sometimes we tell half truths or slightly bent truths because it seems easier than explaining the whole truth, or because we think that it's what someone wants to hear. Or we simply say yes when it's really only an 80% yes. Well 80% yes might as well be 100% no. While it might seem easier to skip hard truths, in the long run it might come back to haunt you, so just be completely truthful the first time, even if that means taking an 80% yes and simply saying no. Better to feel dumb for a couple minutes than to find out later on that you really needed that 20%. 

2. Never hold back, always give 100% effort. 

I learned this through PT, but it applies to all of life. I've never regretted the times I pushed myself to the limit and broke. Like puking after the Murphy challenge, or being unable to do even one pullup at the end of a workout. But I have regretted the times I quit before I was really done, and I've regretted not spending more time improving certain things. Sometimes things in life will be hard, even painful. But that isn't an excuse to go easy on yourself or give up. If you give 100% of everything you have and you don't make it, you at least won't have regrets. The feeling of accomplishment after doing something difficult that you didn't think you could do, is simply amazing. But you'll never have that feeling if you don't leave it all on the field. 

3. Do it faster

At the last pool function PT we had to repeat the same movement multiple times until everyone was doing it at max speed. I realized that at recruit training we will be expected to do every single thing we do with speed and intensity. But I also realized that there's really no excuse for doing anything less, ever. Speed and intensity is important at work too. Why should I casually perform a task that I can perform just as well quickly, leaving more time for other tasks and running the job more efficiently. 

4. Bearing is key

I made the mistake of grinning a little bit while being reprimanded at MEPS. I was not smiling at the reprimand, but at myself for being so dumb. Never-the-less, it got me a proper and deserved tongue lashing. It is ironic that during my time working at the teen shelter I learned to conceal my frustration or anger perfectly, but I never learned to conceal amusement. Now I'd better learn to conceal all the rest of my emotions or I'm going to get thrashed in bootcamp. 

5. Hurry up and wait! 

I said that speed and intensity is important, but from MEPS I learned that sometimes you just have to wait with speed and intensity. Don't get mad or frustrated at the situation, because it's just life and its going to happen alot. Wait patiently, but don't be that guy who zones out and doesn't notice that its his turn finally. 

6. How to shave with a regular razor

I've spent my whole life shaving with an electric shaver. Well they don't have those in boot camp, so in preparation for my departure (before I got my august 11th ship date) I finally bought a Gillette razor and some shaving cream and taught myself to shave with it. 

7. How to shave with a regular razor… without shaving cream

After a recently returned from bootcamp PFC mentioned shaving with hot water, or even with things that are not shaving cream, like hand sanitizer. I proceeded to practice shaving with just hot water. Surprisingly, I think I like it better. I always hated that messy shaving cream. 

8. Goals

Before I enlisted I had been training towards some Parkour goals. I went from zero physical activity, to being able to do intermediate parkour, simply by setting goals. As I achieved each goal I set for myself I set a new one and started training towards it. In a real sense this was the thing that drew me to the Marines over the Army. The Marines set goals and expect you to achieve them. Setting goals and achieving them through hard work is basically what the Marine Corps advertises about itself. Before parkour and the Marines I wasn't setting very many goals or trying very hard to achieve them. But without goals, without targets to strive for, we as people stagnate. We become leaves in a stream, just going where we're carried. Our nation and world is full of people like that, and sadly many of the people in the world with goals have bad, yea evil goals. The terrorists have goals, and they're willing to put out the effort and sacrifice to achieve them. I have a goal to serve my country and help defend it against those guy's goals. I also have a goal to become a chaplain and help other young military men and women. 

But below those lofty goals is another level. You can set goals in every area of your life. You don't have to become a Marine, or join the military at all to make a positive difference. You can set a goal to be a better employee at your job, to improve your physical fitness, or to spend time reading your Bible. Don't be satisfied with where you are, reach for the stars, achieve something. Make a difference in your school, church, and community. I've got a long ways to goal to achieve those goals myself. But now I know that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. 

Semper-fit- Third Poolee Function

I've decided to switch to past tense for now. I'll only use present tense for special occasions. 

I knew well in advance when this pool function would be. I got a text from my recruiter, Sergeant Lovett, two days ahead of time that said simply "Pool function Saturday at 0745. Mandadory and locked on. If you don't know what that means then call me." followed by the uniform requirements. I did text him and ask what "locked on" meant, and he explained it simply meant to come prepared to follow instructions and protocol and be motivated no matter what. I knew that wasn't an indicator of an easy day. 

Saturday night I couldn't sleep, thunderstorms woke me up at 4am, and I never went back to sleep. It was still raining pretty good when I arrived a good ten minutes early at the recruiting station. I was surprised to find about a dozen other poolees already inside. More piled in pretty quick and we just stood around speculating about what we would do, considering the rain. There was a brand new Marine, fresh out of boot camp there in his desert cammie bottoms and boots, and tight fitting Olive T shirt. We all crowded around him asking questions about boot camp, which he happily answered. At 0745 Staff Sergeant Castleberry (male, his wife is also a Marine recruiter at the office) called for us to line up in alphabetical order to be weighed and sign in. We all immediately turned to each other and began sharing last names. We got worked out into line pretty quickly. In Boot camp it would never be fast enough, but it satisfied the recruiters. I was only 2 pounds over my minimum weight for my hight, definitely need to gain weight. 

After that a list of names was called for the IST (Initial Strength Test). The IST consists of a max set of pull-ups, max number of crunches you can do in 2 minutes, and a 1.5 mile timed run. Those individuals who were called lined up in front of the pull-up bar. The rest of us milled about briefly before being instructed to form ranks and sit down. This we did, all crammed together on the floor. We sat for quite awhile watching poolees doing their pullups. We cheered them on and boo'd the ones who quit before they were really finished. As the last of them headed for the bar the recruiters worked out a SNAFU and decided everyone else was going to do an IST as well, while those who'd finished pullups went outside to do crunches. By this time the rain had stopped, so it was on. We all got in line for the pull-up bar and waited our turn. When we got to the bar we had to say "Poolee Glass requesting permission to mount the bar." Then the recruiter would say "mount" and then "begin," and count for us. I managed 11 pullups, despite giving my all to get one more. I had done 12 less than a week ago and was hoping to repeat that performance. As soon as I finished my pullups I jogged out to a grassy area a short distance away where poolees were being lined up for crunches. I took a spot at the end of the line and the next poolee to arrive became my partner. After filling the grassy area we got down and began. My partner did 60, I matched my all time record with 86, but just wasn't able to exceed it. The ground was very wet from the rain, and our backsides got all muddy. I didn't let it bother me, which would turn out to be a wise move. Once we gave our scores to a recruiter with a clipboard, we were sent back up to the parking lot to form a formation. From there we lined up and re-filled our water-bottles, then re-formed again and were split up. Those completing the IST were sent one way to do their run, the rest of us were instructed to go to the nearby college track for PT. 

I hopped in with somebody and we carpooled the short distance to the track. It was a very short track, probably 1/8th of a mile, with just open grass in the middle. There our little crowd of poolees was greeted by a very large, heavily muscled man wearing a Marine shirt and woodland marpat Bottoms and combat boots. He was wearing a Marine Veteran ball cap, so I deduced that he was not an active duty Marine, but somebody brought in to torture us. As he introduced himself my deduction was proved 100% correct. He introduced himself as a Veteran of OIF and OEF, a former Football player, and current certified "Semper-fit" instructor working at a nearby fitness gym. He briefly explained that we would do a short warm-up formation run, some formation PT, and then split up into a circuit using various exercise tools that were placed in intervals around the edge of the field, along with some stations with no equipment that involved simple exercises. Once his short explanation was finished, he called for four squad leaders to step forward. I know I want to be a leader, so I stepped up along with three others. The rest of the poolees fell into lines behind us, and the Boot Marine acted as guide. We swung our formation around onto the track and ran around it once calling cadences with the Fitness trainer. From there the trainer instructed us squad leaders on what to do and had us form up facing the rest of the poolees in a wide open PT formation. We then proceeded to do some of the Marine Corps PT staples: side straddle hops, leg lifts, pushups, and mountain climbers. We performed these with the fitness instructor setting cadence, and us providing the count. He frequently stopped the exercise to correct our various and sundry mistakes, then making us start the count over. I also learned that you can never move fast enough from position of attention, to exercise, or back again. You have to move as fast as possible, and when somebody isn't fast enough everyone has to do it over till they all get it right. When you go down for pushups, you don't lower yourself, you just fall straight down. I'm happy to say that after the first time we were corrected I was one of the fastest. I figured that as a temporary squad leader I needed to set an example. 

Once we were all panting, we were given a walk-around of the circuit stations, where it was explained to us what to do at each one. But when the instructor tried to have us set our water bottles down in an orderly fashion it went FUBAR in a hurry. We were yelled at roundly and placed back into the formation we had used to PT. From there I figured we would divide up by squad, but instead we split up by rank, which put all four of us squad leaders as one group. This turned out to be interesting, since being high level A- type personalities, who felt that we should be setting an example, we probably pushed ourselves and each other much harder than would otherwise have happened.  At each station we assumed the position of attention until instructed to prepare, then we would exercise for one minute at the max pace we could manage before running to the next station within 30 seconds, standing at attention, and beginning the next exercise. There were 8 stations total. Our squad leader team tried to be as organized as possible, even setting a cadence for ourselves for some of the exercises. Halfway through it started pouring rain, and we just kept right on going through it, slipping and sliding in the mud the field had become. By the end of this mad dash PT session I thought I was feeling the hurt. We re-formed into formation for water and rest. But when the instructor asked if we thought we could go another round, I loudly joined in with a hearty "yes sir" along with most everyone else. This time we did 30 second sessions with 30 second breaks in between. It wasn't raining anymore, which made it a little more bearable, but this time around you could start seeing the strengths and weaknesses of our little group. I petered out on pushups, and mountain climbers, but I had no trouble with squats, crunches, or weight swings. Others excelled or flagged at different stations. We stayed motivated through it all. By the end of the second round I was definitely hurting everywhere. Once I caught my breath it felt really good. We re-formed for water and rest and after a short speech from the instructor about the pride that comes with pushing yourself and not quitting, and the pride of earning the title Marine, we were dismissed to return to the recruiting station. 

The last half hour at the station once we got back consisted entirely of hanging around chatting with other poolees, and the Boot Marine. We swapped stories of the amusing things that happened to us at MEPS and the hotel, and talked about the stories our military friends had told. Eventually everyone who didn't have shipping paperwork to do was dismissed, though a couple of us hung around talking for a few more minutes anyway. 

It I had had any ideas that boot camp would be easy (and I didn't) they would have been crushed by this pool function. The new Marine fresh out of boot who was with us at the field PT, assured us that PT in recruit training is harder, and the drill instructors aren't as nice as the fitness instructor was. He also said that those who excel in boot camp, those who do well, get extra attention as the drill instructors try to push for their breaking point. I want to earn PFC in recruit training by being a leader and setting an example, so I suppose thats what I have to look forward to. I went away at the end of the day with fresh determination to never quit or give up, to give 100% at all times, at work, church, or boot camp. 

Unprepared

Today I was less than 48 hours away from the gate of Parris Island and a pair of yellow footprints with my name on them. I got up early to go PT with my recruiter at the station, but he called me at 6am when I was about to leave home to say that he had an early appointment he took from another recruiter and he wasn't going to be there to PT. I opted to just knock out a few sets of pullups and crunches later since I had a sore achilles tendon and didn't want to run without consulting my recruiter about it. For now I decided to go back to bed for a little. I wasn't tired and didn't really sleep but it felt nice to lay down.

Around 8:30 there was a knock at the door. I peaked through the blinds and saw dress blue deltas. I hopped out of bed and threw a shirt on pretty quick. Staff Sergeant Thorne was at the door. He said "A slot is open for 0321 Recon-man." I asked when, but I knew the answer since he was at my door. "You come over to the station, we put you on the shuttle to go up to the hotel, then you process and go to recruit training tomorrow." My heart about stopped. This was what I wanted. From the moment I found out that recon was an option it's what I wanted to do. I've always dreamed of working in military special operations. I briefly paused to mention that I had been considering trying to get into active duty, but Staff Sergeant Thorne pointed out that I would need to replace my reserve slot to do that, which isn't likely to happen soon. He also pointed out that I would be earning active duty pay for the next year while going through training. By this time Joy was up and dressed, and she in her wife smarts invited the recruiter in so we could sit down in the living room. I knew that the biggest issue with this opportunity was that my affairs are not in order. My wife has no driver's license and depends on others from transportation, my car needs Florida tags, and there's a dozen other little things that need to be done. I told Staff Sergeant Thorne this plainly and he said he understood and that the recruiters and their wives were available to help in any way they could.

The next hour was a bit of a blur. I determined from the start that my main concern was my wife. I knew that I could go to recruit training and do just fine, even with such short notice. I asked about my physical state, since I had been told they wanted people to pass an IST with certain standards in order to take a recon slot. Staff Sergeant Thorne said that he had been tracking my progress and had talked to the recon unit's commanding officer. He had gotten clearance specifically for me to go, because I had shown dedication in working toward my goal. It might be the only opportunity that will arise to take an 0321 recon slot and he only just got word this morning.

My wife was pretty nervous, but she was taking it surprisingly well. She talked to Mrs. Thorne, the recruiter's wife on the phone, about what it was like to deal with the separation. I called and talked to a friend, my Pastor's son, and he advised me that there was an awful lot that needed to be squared away still, and that I be sure that there was some sort of solid plan to get it done without me. Finally I talked to my wife's parents, a very important call since they are the ones who have volunteered to take care of her financially in my absence. Her father told me that they are supportive of my decision to join the Marines, but that he was very concerned about this timing. Joy is totally dependent on others, without a drivers license or any experience with handling the car or finances. Plus we still have one month to go before our first anniversary of marriage, and he was worried how she would take that. He said he would not tell me not to do it, but that I needed to think carefully about what I was doing. I thanked him and went inside with a heavy heart. I could tell that he did not want to tell me what to do, but that he strongly felt that it was a bad idea for me to leave today. I could tell that he saw it as leaving Joy in a bad situation.

I went back in the house and looked at my wife, she was talking with Staff Sergeant Thorne, clearly in control of herself in spite of the major shock she had just received. She is strong, whatever she thinks about herself. At that very moment she was thinking that I was about to leave, and had spent the past hour thinking that I was about to leave. She knows that this is what I've always dreamed of and assumed that I was going to go, but she wasn't blubbering or incoherent. She's a wonderful woman and deserves better than to be dumped with all the responsibility of taking care of herself, without even having some of the most basic tools to do so.

I told Staff Sergeant Thorne that I could not accept the offer. I told him that I knew when I signed up that might not be able to have the job I wanted, and that my decision to join stands firm regardless of whether I get to join Recon or not. The situation is that my wife is just not prepared, physically or emotionally, and that leaving now would probably damage my relationship with her family. I told him that saying yes would have been the easy choice, following my dream right now. But putting my wife's good before my own was the right choice. Staff Sergeant Thorne was very understanding. He said that he could understand why I made my decision and that he would use it as an example to his recruiters. I told him that I had made a mistake by assuming that I had yea however many months before I would be leaving, and had been lazy in taking care of my affairs. I determined to learn a lesson from this, and I would ensure that if he showed up in a couple weeks, or a couple months with another chance, we would be prepared.

Staff Sergeant Thorne departed, and so did my chance to be less than 48 hours from Parris Island. It was a very sobering experience to say the least. I was faced with a very difficult decision, and I made a very hard choice. I could have been on my way following my dream, and really the only thing that held me back was my failure to prepare for this possibility. I assumed that I had time to prepare for my departure and I focused alot on my physical preparation. I've worked very hard to grow stronger and faster, and set myself up for success, but I failed to set my wife up for success. I will learn from this and make sure that we are both ready for anything that the Marine Corps might throw at us in the coming months. So for now my priorities are clear, get Joy her driver's license, get her enrolled in college for the fall, and make sure she has the ability to take over the finances and car at a moment's notice.

Also, I think Joy and I will both value the time we spend together a lot more, because we don't know when another knock might come to the door and yesterday will become the last day we have together for a long time.