(I started this entry on June 19. My computer died that day. It’s taken a month to get a new computer and get back to it. Thank you Bruce and Carol for the computer!!! Much appreciated. Instead of adding to this post all the stuff in between then and now, I will simply finish this one the way I was going to and do a new entry later this week. Enjoy)

It’s been a while since I posted to the blog. I started the blog to fill some time when I had to quit school to prepare for deployment with my reserve unit. I had thought that not going to school would give me too much time on my hands and I wanted something to fill that time. However, since March I have been going non-stop with training, drills, army schools, travel, and just getting ready in general. The time has finally arrived. Our mobilization orders have gone into effect. We have moved to Ft. Hood. We will now finish our training and be deployed in the near future.

As we had our farewell/mobilization ceremony at the unit over the past weekend, a lot of things come to mind for this deployment. First and foremost, I’m so happy my family could join me for the weekend. They were not able to be at the last ceremony I was part of for a deployment. And my younger children were too small to fully comprehend it last time anyway. This time they were there, watched the ceremony, listened to the speakers, and understood what was going on.

The second thing I thought of was how easy I’ll have it compared to my wife. I have long thought this, and it was spoken about by one of the generals at the ceremony, that the spouse of the deployed soldier has the harder job. When I deploy, I’ll be told where to be, when to be there, where to sleep, what to eat, etc. I will have little to worry about most things. My wife on the other hand will now be the mom and the dad; the good guy and the bad guy; the referee, the comforter, the judge and jury. And not that I did a ton of housework, she’ll have to pick up my slack now. Thankfully, we have some awesome children that I know will step up and make things happen. My wife and my kids are my heroes for allowing me to do what I do.

As I look around at my fellow soldiers in my unit I consider them family. There has always been a special bond between people in the military. That bond is multiplied greatly and even more present when a group comes together to go to war. It’s a special feeling to be part of a group like this. And this is a special group to be part of.

Lastly, as far as the blog goes, I’ll finish with this thought. During the ceremony we did the Soldier’s Creed. Within the Soldier’s Creed is the Warrior Ethos, four short lines of the Creed. When doing the Soldier’s Creed in a large group I actually tear up a little. It’s very moving. Even though you can’t get the full effect of 200+ soldiers belting it out, here’s the Soldier’s Creed with the Warrior Ethos in bold:

I am an American Soldier.

I am a warrior and a member of a team. I serve the people of the United States and live the Army Values.

I will always place the mission first.

I will never leave a fallen comrade.
I am disciplined, physically and mentally tough, trained and proficient in my warrior tasks and drills. I always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself.

I am an expert and I am a professional.

I stand ready to deploy, engage, and destroy the enemies of the United States of America in close combat.

I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of Life.

I am an American Soldier.

HOOAH!! Good day and God bless.

Dave