So there’s this old joke about Dwight Eisenhower and
some paratroopers before D-Day. I don’t know if the
story is accurate,
but even if it isn’t, it is still undoubtedly true, if you follow
me. Anyway, General Eisenhower was inspecting a company of
paratroopers who would soon drop behind German lines while the Marines
attacked Normandy’s beaches. The General wanted to
get a sense of the men’s morale, and he asked some of them
how they felt about being a paratrooper. The men responded
with comments such as:
“I love it, sir!”
“Proud to serve my country, sir!”
“The greatest experience of my life,
General!” and so on.
But then Eisenhower came to a soldier who responded:
“Sir, I absolutely hate it, sir!”
That was an extraordinary thing for an enlisted man to say in front of
the Supreme Allied Commander of Europe. The General was taken
aback. “Son,” he said, “it was
my understanding this was a volunteer unit. If you
don’t like jumping out of planes, why the hell did you sign
on for this duty?”
“Because I love being with people who do love it,
sir!”
Four years in the UMMB, and I know exactly how that guy
felt. Band camp was hot. Band practice could be
cold and dark. Gym floors were hard. Away games
were long. Plus, it’s not as if life stood still
while I was marching with the band. My classwork still had to
get done. My friends–my regular friends, who
didn’t march–would have all kinds of adventures and
I wouldn’t find out about them until Sunday night, if I found
out about them at all.
