Military Narrative

Nicholas Roberts
Professor Rinehart
English 1100
8 September 2013
Be All You Can Be
“When I grow up, I wanna be a soldier!” I told my mother. “You know your grandfather was a Colonel in the Army!” my mother told me. I had always looked up to my grandfather; he was the rock that kept our family together. I remember standing in his office with all the awards and commendations hanging on the wall. The sword that hung over his desk made him seem like the coolest guy ever.
“So your mother tells me you want to be in the military,” my grandfather inquired one day. “Yes! I want to be just like you one day,” I said. “Well the Army is the place for you!” he proudly stated. He told us stories of his adventures while in the Army, each one…show more content…
It was my first time outside the base; I could barely breathe with all the equipment and gear I was carrying. “You’re going to be fine,” my Sargent told me as I climbed in the back seat of our up-armored Humvee. “We are just patrolling, we’ll be back in an hour,” the Sargent said as well. As I looked outside behind a half inch of bullet proof glass, I saw people just living their lives and trying to feed themselves and survive. When it seemed like things were calm, I almost fell asleep a couple times and I would slap my face to stay awake. We shared stories of our lives as we tried to break the silence, always keeping watch on everything we drove by. Everyone stopped talking as the radio announced a fire fight that erupted several miles east. We were told to provide security and set up a perimeter for the convoy that was under attack. “It’s go time” my sergeant exclaimed. The engine roared as we pushed the Humvee’s towards the kill zone. “This is what I was meant for” I kept telling myself as we hurtled towards our friends. Suddenly, I was upside down, a loud ringing engulfed my entire body. Then gunshots, like a swarm of bees, swarmed all over the Humvee slamming into the sides. Our convoy was under attack, and my Humvee was hit by an IED. I reached for my rifle and unfastened myself suspended upside down. The driver was dead, shrapnel and burns covered his lifeless body. For a split second I didn’t know what to do, I felt helpless and overwhelmed. My sergeant grabbed me by my shoulders and screamed. I saw his mouth moving and the stress in his eyes but only heard muffled noises. He grabbed my left ear and I saw blood on his fingers. I reached franticly and confirmed that my ear was bleeding. He motioned for me to help him with the heavy steel door that protected us from the outside. I pushed all my weight against the door as it inched itself open. As we emerged from our Humvee, we scrambled to the rear vehicle to help suppress enemy fire.