Morale

It is the simple things in life that are the most satisfying.

For a Marine, morale is important to his well being. The most simple and trivial things, although materialistic as they are, help tremendously to establish a positive mindset for training.

Clean Clothes

Getting dressed in the dark at 4am is never an easy task. I opened my closet near my bed and felt around for the set of cammies hanging on the hook. I felt the material in the dark. It smelled of laundry detergent and still held the crisp of a recently hung cloth. I pulled the blouse over my head and felt the softness and the dryness of the cloth against my body. It was almost like getting a hug in the dark. Having clean clothes to start the day is essential to my mindset, even though in less than 30 minutes they would be soaked by the humidity.

Sitting Down

My feet were swollen and drenched in sweat after the 10 hours of martial arts training. I walked into my room and locked my rifle in the post by the closets, then set my water logged flak jacked by the desk. I set myself down into my desk chair and slouched, relieving the pressure off my feet and off my lower back. When doing any type of physical training here, it is easy to forget that you never sit. And even if you do, the ground is never that comfortable. There is nothing more relaxing than sitting in a padded chair in an air conditioned room.

Chow

Laughter turned to silence. Although this was not a bad thing. The young waitress in the breakfast restaurant had just set down 9 plates worth of food for four people. We were all busy stuffing our faces after remarking about the events that played out the night before at the bar. After 15 minutes, my stomach was stuffed with pancakes, over easy eggs, biscuits, sausage, and a heaping amount of hash browns. My metabolism has sped up significantly while here. A full stomach on a Saturday morning with friends is much appreciated.

Pay Day

It is a rare moment that happens twice a month. I'll click the link to my bank, one specifically for military members. Listed electronically, the numbers in my account have grown. It's nice not to feel guilty when pulling cash from the ATM on those days. I try not to do the calculations as to what we are getting paid per hour. Being that we work and average of 70 hours a week, its much less than it should be. But hey... I'm not complaining. Pay day is a great day.

Cold Water

The marines have issued us a 'camel back' to use for our time period here. There are days that the sun and humidity make it feel like swimming through a hot ocean. But these packs keep the water cool despite the heat. A quick sip from the hose yields a cool sensation down in my insides, like swallowing too much ice cream. It only lasts a moment, but enough to relieve the sun's thrashing.


Correspondents

The mail representative constantly gets harassed. He is approached like a celebrity when he hands out mail at the end of the day. Care packages from mothers and letters from girl friends are more sought out than gold. After the day is over, I walk to the garden in the courtyard. Lieutenants are spread out by tables, on chairs, standing by walls and on the grass all on their cell phones calling to whom ever. Back in my room, the facebook chats are already up, email's opened, and the tap-tap of typing back to respond fill the room. Everyone here love's being a marine and spending time with each other. But it is the people who are not in the military that we connect with most and keep our spirits high.



The life of a marine is simple sometimes, or at least for now. God knows how complicated things will be in 5 months.



Thanks for reading