Life With Jules, and other stuff

So we decided to join the Navy So we decided to join the Navy Our parents could not have been more proud We thought we knew what we were getting into Boy, we could not have been more wrong! We went to the local recruiter To decide the job we would do We wanted to be a jet pilot But we couldn’t get it approved. So we decided to join the Navy As generations have done so before We were learning the basics in boot camp While getting in shape as well! We went to our first duty station A ship so grey and so large We trained to be a mechanic To keep that big boat afloat. So we decided to join the Navy To wear our dress blues, rewarding We held our heads up high; So proud.

For some reason, our service men and women have been on my mind lately. I have been reminiscing about my time in the Navy during the early 1990's. I treasure that time in my life deeply. My only regret is that I didn't stay on active duty. My life since the Navy has taken so many twists and turns that I sometimes forget which way I am heading. Then again, where in the world would I be today if I were still enlisted and serving actively? Here is a little poem I wrote in honor of our American Heros...and also those foreign allies serving alongside us in Iraq and Afghanistan (please note that the use of "he" is not gender specific and is intended to mean both male and female): Soldier He is there In an unknown world Helping To keep peace alive He is there Wondering and waiting Praying The day will come For the return To his home He is there Protecting the weak Protecting them all From ruin and death He is there He is the soldier January 4, 1991

Ok, so I am in grad school studying History and Culture of the Middle East. My primary focus is (hopefully) going to be ancient Iraq. My goal is to one day travel to this country and be able to see all of the remains of ancient sites. For now, I hold the sailors and soldiers in my prayers. Here is one that I wrote in the earliest hours of our engagement in Iraq in 1990/1. memory of war a sound of drums beating in the distance a smell of death in the air the blinding sun sets low in the sky another day passed another to come the soldiers are awake at the break of dawn they prepare to fight for the freedom of all gunfire ringing in the air a clinging memory to those who were there november 6, 1990