Last night i got an email from the college that said i needed to prove i had gotten my vaccinations (in case i bite the other students, apparently) and so i went rummaging through the archives to find my navy medical record.
as a former corpsman i take pride in the nearly exact facsimile of my actual service medical record that is held in a warehouse in indiana--i think. i know where everything is in it. and i took a moment to look it over before getting to the shot record. I saw dozens of names, most of which i knew, some of which were friends. and i recalled specific instances, like the time i got acute pharyngitis onboard ship in southeast asia and had to get antibiotics every six hours. and i started my own iv. i got to sleep in the hospital ward, in a full sized bed, instead of the cramped racks below. but it was the day before we left the ship, so i had all my worldly possessions with me to carry around.
i saw the work that my compatriots and i did reviewing medical records, holding shot standdowns. mostly i just wondered where they all were now. That is the small burden i bear from my military service. I didn't have to watch them die or lose a limb, and for that i am fortunate and grateful. i made it through my tour uninjured, and again grateful. but i wonder where my brothers are, usually on veteran's day or the 4th. i hope they are happy and well and that their lives have become more than they hoped it would. i'm doing my best to make that happen for me, and i pray that they are doing the same in whatever form that takes.
its amazing the effect that groups of people with different backgrounds all packed together, like they are in the military, can have on one another. i have been molded by their company and their absence.
as a former corpsman i take pride in the nearly exact facsimile of my actual service medical record that is held in a warehouse in indiana--i think. i know where everything is in it. and i took a moment to look it over before getting to the shot record. I saw dozens of names, most of which i knew, some of which were friends. and i recalled specific instances, like the time i got acute pharyngitis onboard ship in southeast asia and had to get antibiotics every six hours. and i started my own iv. i got to sleep in the hospital ward, in a full sized bed, instead of the cramped racks below. but it was the day before we left the ship, so i had all my worldly possessions with me to carry around.
i saw the work that my compatriots and i did reviewing medical records, holding shot standdowns. mostly i just wondered where they all were now. That is the small burden i bear from my military service. I didn't have to watch them die or lose a limb, and for that i am fortunate and grateful. i made it through my tour uninjured, and again grateful. but i wonder where my brothers are, usually on veteran's day or the 4th. i hope they are happy and well and that their lives have become more than they hoped it would. i'm doing my best to make that happen for me, and i pray that they are doing the same in whatever form that takes.
its amazing the effect that groups of people with different backgrounds all packed together, like they are in the military, can have on one another. i have been molded by their company and their absence.
1 comment:
I love this blog. You make me proud to be your mom, when I think of your 5 years as a corpsman and all the adventures you had. Love on Veteran's Day to you.
Mom
Post a Comment