Compartmentalization is the practice of mentally setting things aside that are unnecessary or counterproductive to your immediate purpose. Think of a soldier who has to drag a buddy out of a firefi...
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I found out a few days ago that one of the Marines I served with died. A year ago. His old squad leader, Jay, told me after he DMed me. Actually, he didn’t tell me right off. He said, “Hey do you,...
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Visualization, like segmenting, is exactly what it sounds like - the practice of mentally rehearsing something before you do it. Researchers use the acronym PETTLEP to break down the components o...
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In my years spent traversing the war-torn countries made of so much kitty litter, the contrast with our great nation has become sharp enough to cut flesh. The value of human life, the treatment of ...
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A little-appreciated fact about selection is that a surprising amount of the quitting happens on a Sunday night or Monday morning, not in the middle of training evolutions. That’s right, GI Jane ...
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The Camaraderie That Comes With Strain
As the GWOT generation ages so do our hobbies and off-time passions. Some seem to have developed as if we were all still grouped under a single banner. One such passion is adventuring—and the ...
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I was still 17 when I enlisted in the Navy. My parents had to sign the enlistment paperwork for me, since I wasn’t of legal age. This wasn’t without some resistance. I could have become a doctor. ...
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Regret and the Military Temperament
“For the ways of destiny are strange, and the workings of its laws are sometimes hidden; and truly, if the hooves of Zotulla’s palfrey had not spurned you and trodden you under, your life had been ...
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The lost art of pipe smoking has slowly but surely been climbing back into vogue. For many, smokers and nonsmokers alike, the sweet aroma of burning pipe tobacco takes them back to fond memories of...
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I am standing before the Offering Hall of the Yasukuni Shrine. Despite the aesthetic beauty and calm, reverential atmosphere of the Shrine’s environs, any sense of peace or tranquility is difficult...
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Celebrating the Fourth of July in Budva, Montenegro: An #OAFScout Short Story
’Twas the summer of 2015 and I was backpacking ’round the world. After a boozy night out in Budva, Montenegro I had a big breakfast at the hostel I stayed in with two of my Australian buddies.“...
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Hiking Zion National Park’s Most Iconic Trails
Zion National Park is nothing short of inspiring. The colors, canyons, wildlife, high sandstone towers, desert waterfalls, and serene atmosphere have attracted humans for thousands of yea...
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Wall Street JournalCan we talk honestly here for a minute? It’s just us here now; guys and gals with thick skins thanks to some good old GWOT endless wars that we have been slogging through for...
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A few years ago, I decided to hang up the active duty gloves and join the reserves. I left Portland in the ’90s to enlist, and I was looking forward to settling down in the last place I called home...
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No Longer a Marine, a Mere Veteran
That man in the sand-colored cammies running across desert plains with a rifle in hand and a pack on his back is gone, stored away in an old, dusty seabag that sits on the top-shelf of the rack i...
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