Today I am having one of those off days. For most of the morning all I could think about was being with my unit. Yes I know people are going to say that it’s going to take some time and so on. However I am so torn right now. I was thinking this morning that I gave so much in my training. I did so much and I feel its all for nothing.

You hear about those Soldiers back in WWII that even after being shot, would go AWOL from the field Hospital to just be with their fellow Soldier. Well I’m feeling that way today. It’s so hard to just explain why I feel this way. You’d have to walk a mile in my boots. 9W anyone?

I am trying to integrate and function like civilian Joe. Seems that for the moment that my mindset is not here. I do enjoy being home, trust me. I have a very supportive wife and it seems that I have become a lot closer with my children. I know it would break all their hearts if I had to go again. Why does warrior blood have to run so thick in my veins?

My wife told me as we went to bed that she doesn’t want to have to go through that again. I told her that we would be fine. She means well and I know that she would be supportive if I had to go again but the wound is still a little fresh.

So that is my train of thought for the moment.

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General, News from home

A great leader in Military history passed away last night. General William Westmoreland. I thought it would be appropriate to tell a little bit more about him other than the fact that he has left us.

William Childs Westmoreland (born March 26, 1914, Spartanburg County, South Carolina) is a retired United States General who commanded US military operations in the Vietnam War from 1964-68 and served as US Army Chief of Staff from 1968 to 1972.

Early Career
Westmoreland entered West Point in 1932 after one year at the Citadel. His initial motive for entering was to “see the world”. Following graduation in 1936 he became an artillery officer and served in several different commands, reaching the ranks of lieutenant colonel and subsequently colonel during combat operations in the European theater during WW II.

During WW II, in 1943 while in Sicily, his battalion was selected to be the artillery support for the 82nd Airborne Division.

Regimental and Division Command
Westmoreland’s WW II experience with the 82nd Airborne led to his being asked by General James M. Gavin to join the 82nd as a regimental commander after the war, which was the beginning of his professional association with airborne and airmobile troops. He served with the 82nd Airborne for four years.

During the Korean Conflict he commanded the 187th Regimental Combat Team.

In late 1953 Westmoreland was promoted brigadier general and spent the next 5 years in the Pentagon. In 1958 he assumed command of the 101st Airborne Division. In 1960 he became Superintendent of West Point, in 1963 became commander of the XVIII Airborme Corps. Later that year he became deputy commander of MACV, assuming command of MACV from General Paul Harkins in 1964.

Vietnam Era
As the head of the Military Assistance Command in Vietnam he was known for highly publicized, positive assessments of US military prospects in Vietnam. However, as time went on the strengthening of North Vietnamese combat forces in the South led to regular requests for increases in US troop strength, from less than 100,000 when he arrived to over 500,000 in 1968.

The most notable campaign was the 1968 Tet Offensive, in which Communist forces attacked cities and towns throughout South Vietnam. Westmoreland successfully fought off the Offensive, but the ferocity of the assault shook public confidence in his previous assurances about the state of the war. Political debate and public opinion led the Johnson administration to limit further increases in troops.

Post Vietnam
Westmoreland served as US Army Chief of Staff from 1968 to 1972 , then retired from the Army. Westmoreland ran unsucessfully for Governor of South Carolina in 1974. He published his autobiography »A Soldier Reports« the following year. Westmoreland later served on a task force to improve educational standards in the state of South Carolina.

Personal Data
In 1947, he married Katherine (»Kitsy«) S. Van Deusen. They had three children: Katherine, Margaret, and James Ripley.

I will leave you with some of his more famous quotes:

“The military don’t start wars. Politicians start wars.”

“I do not believe that the men who served in uniform in Vietnam have been given the credit they deserve. It was a difficult war against an unorthodox enemy.”

“Television is an instrument which can paralyze this country.”

Thank you and see you on the other side Sir!

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General

I must say that alot has changed since I’ve been gone. The first week of work was interesting. I really didn’t do much at all. The first day I spent trying to get all my passwords fixed and my Outlook account was busy downloading over 3000 emails. My work never suspended my account and somehow my email got into some spam bot. So between work related items for the past 7 months and ads for Viagra, I had a busy first day. Everyone was very nice and welcomed me back literally with open arms.

On the home front I have been opening up more and I can tell that my patience level is coming back. When you are a Soldier you do things right away and to the best of your ability. In the civilian world, things are typically worked around certain habits or other tasks. I’ve been getting into the man of the house routine again. You know, fixing things around the house. Well as best as a gimped Soldier can!

My appointment with my doctor went fine. The doctor looked at me after looking at the MRI results and asked me how bad I was hurting! He told me that my surgery would be tricky but nothing he and his team couldn’t handle. He also said that he could have me in for surgery in the following weeks. No more than 4. So I just have to make the admin requests to get short-term disability setup and request a surgery date.

I am happy to be home but the camaraderie that is inside of me still misses my Soldiers and the people I became good friends with. At one point last week I sent an email to our unit admin asking what it would take to get me over there. He said that I need to get fixed first. He didn’t want to see me get hurt because I could not function at 100%. It’s a tough pill to swallow but it’s reality.

I am considering putting the last year’s entries in a book format. However I have yet to find a trustful publisher. This publisher would also respect the fact that I’d be using this pseudonym. If anyone knows someone, send him or her my way.

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General, News from home

This blog is officially a year old. I remember the day I sat down and decided to write my thoughts. At first I was very raw and aggressive in my entries. The time was full of so much uncertainty. I wasn’t sure where or when I was going to leave but I knew something would occur.

Now a year later, that guy that wrote that first entry really has changed. So much more life experience under his belt. I’ve met some great people in the last year. I’ve lost some friends and been thrown a few life bones here and there. I’ve experienced hardships and lived the life of a Soldier.

One thing that has been consistent is my sincere willingness to serve this beautiful country. If I had to do it all again I wouldn’t changed a thing. I still would have volunteered to go to war. I know that my time with this mans’ Army is not done. I can say that I may find myself fighting this fight again. Will it be OIF 4 or OIF 5?

I’d like to say thank you to all the people that have come to this site either by mistake or from another blog. Well over 185,000 unique visitors have had an interest in what I’ve said and I can say that I have appreciated that. It has blown me away with the generosity and the patriotism that some people have displayed.

So thank you for making this blog a living experience for me. Also for being the shoulder to lean on when I’ve needed it most.

Thank You!

30 Comments
General, News from home

I’ve decided to go back to work next week. I think it is best that I integrate back into civilian life sooner than later. I have taken some time off and I am ready to get back into saddle. The thought of being around non-military people again is scary. Some questions linger in my head. Will I be able to relate to them? Will I remember all that I need to be successful? I know that this will not last forever but how long will it be like that?

I have my orthopedic surgeon appointment next week as well. I am very anxious to goto that appointment. With any luck I can get surgery within a month. One thing to note is my employer has been very understanding and supportive of me in this endeavor. Even with me going back to work they understand that most likely in a month I will be having surgery and will require time off. They have certainly taken care of me and for that I am grateful. I think I will write a letter to the CEO soon.

My wife and I have been talking off and on about this whole adjustment thing. Really this is not an uncommon thing among soldiers. I have been gone for a long time. So our separation has forced us to change and adapt. Add the whole military experience on top of two changed people and you have created a whole lot of new variables. So the first step has been talking about it. One of my issues is letting my guard down. This has always been a problem for me. So I am working on it.

So that is latest and greatest with me.

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General, News from home