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I knew so many men like him as I grew up. I identified with and respected them all the years since. Among those I knew were an ace who served in the Flying Tigers, a ranger who scaled Point-Du-Hoc on D-Day, a UDT sailor who cleared surf obstacles before the Okinawa landing, and a man with the 10th Mountain Infantry who received two silver stars and was the only one of eight officers in his company to land in Italy in January 1945 and soldier through the 102 days until the Germans surrendered.

When I first met them, they were in their 30’s and 40’s, because my father took me with him golfing on the weekends when I was in junior high. They were teachers, cooks, carpenters, bankers, and car salesmen. I remember feelings of surprise and esteem on those random occasions when the subject of service would come up. I decided then military service was just another rite of passage into adulthood. I really wanted to be a CPA, but when my turn came I volunteered and ended up in Vietnam.