If You’re Lucky Enough to Be a Sailor, You’re Lucky Enough

I remember marching in the Veterans Day parade in Memphis throughout high school, playing “National Emblem” for what seemed like hours, sometimes in bitter cold weather.  I didn’t fully comprehend what it was for…  How could I?  I was just a kid from a city in the middle of a country, and yes, there was a large Navy base just outside my city, but they didn’t mix with us (the locals) and we didn’t mix with them…

Suddenly, I found myself at the Navy recruiting station, talking to my old pal, Petty Officer Eugene S. Hampton, also known as Hambone, and the next thing I knew, I was enlisted.  There was never a question about which service I would join.  I think it is telling that my given middle name was “Lake”, as water was part of my parents’ story, and so it would become part of mine.  I still did not understand just how big of a deal it was that I was in the Navy.  I just thought it would be like a job, but one that would take me away from home for a few years. 

Thirty-one years ago, I remember sitting in the MEPS station in Memphis after our swearing in and wondering how my life would change. All of a sudden, this choice I’d made to join the Navy was very real, and in a few short hours, I would be boarding a plane at Memphis International Airport to go to Orlando for Boot Camp. I was excited and scared, and a little sad because I knew I was going to miss my family and friends. The world was at peace, so I was in for some adventure. My family and closest friends came to the airport and saw me off at the gate. I remember crying when I hugged them. Soon, we were in Orlando, and life as I knew it changed rapidly.

I remember the first morning… being awakened at some ungodly hour by someone banging on a metal trash can and screaming for us to wake up.

I remember how horrible the food was… all I ate was waffles or cereal for breakfast and potato wedges or rice with A-1 Sauce for lunch and dinner.

I remember the first time I got to call home, calling and calling and calling and no one was there. Finally, just before my time was up, my little brother answered. I had never been so happy to hear his voice in my life!

I remember being sent to the drill team… because I’d played French horn so I was a bugler by default! I actually designed our field show for our Pass and Review because my dad was a band director!

I remember my ankles being so swollen from the weight of my boondockers (steel-toed boots, for my civilian friends!) that two days before our Pass and Review, the CC for the drill team ordered me to go to medical or I wouldn’t march on Friday. I spent the next two days on bed rest with my feet elevated, and wore sneakers to the chow hall, but I marched on Friday! My parents and my brother were there to see it, and I would soon see them!

I remember the afternoons in Tijuana and nights in San Diego when I was in school there.

I remember settling in to my new career… and then, Iraq invaded Kuwait! All of a sudden, my “job” got a little more serious. Shit was real. I was 20 years old and writing a will at Navy Legal! Fortunately, I stayed in CT, safe on my little submarine base, and the years began to tick by… until I was in my last year…

I got scared, didn’t know what I would do if I got out and wasn’t sure if I really wanted to get out. I still wanted to go to Italy, and I hadn’t gotten to do that yet, so I called the Detailer (everything was done by phone back then), and they offered me orders to Italy! The decision was made, and I would stay for a few more years…

I did this for the next 14 years… waiting to see where I could go before I signed re-enlistment papers.  Bouncing back and forth between Italy and Georgia (the state, not the country), and finally Greece, before returning to Georgia to retire.

As I wound down toward the nineteen year mark, the Navy decided that I had not spent enough time out of the country and I got orders to go to Souda Bay, Crete.  As much as I didn’t want to go, and I DID do the countdown (I think most of us do!), I did love Crete, and would have gladly stayed another year if the Navy had said I had to stay.  As a side note, the first day I arrived on Crete was the day I met the man who would eventually become my best friend, dive buddy, and the love of my life, Wayne Grubbs. 

Suddenly, my time on Crete came to an end, and I returned to Kings Bay, not knowing what the future held in store for me.  I read “Old Glory” every day for three weeks in preparation for my retirement ceremony so I wouldn’t cry during my flag ceremony.  All of a sudden, the day came and I was piped ashore… 

We – my Shipmates and I – served through Desert Shield, Desert Storm, the fall of the former Yugoslavia, Kosovo, 9/11 and Afghanistan, Iraqi Freedom, and Somalia. We made friendships that have spanned decades and miles. We saw people leave and never return. We saw people leave and return changed. We watched young kids grow into strong, dedicated Sailors. We had great days and shitty days. We missed birthdays, holidays, weddings, and funerals. We did it because we believe in this great nation, we believe in our Constitution, we believe in protecting the freedoms that our families enjoy. We did it because we loved it. We – most of us – would do it all again! Thank you for thinking of us today, but I know for me, it was my honor and my pleasure!