Semper Fidelis

I've been asked many times, "What is it about Marines that you love so much?" After some thought, I realized it's not really "what" but "who." Many members of my family are Marines-my daddy, my maternal uncle, my maternal grandfather and great uncle, as well as several cousins, not to mention a great many friends. 

  Marines are intelligent and strong.

A girl's first love is her daddy and mine was a Marine, back in the early 60's before he met my mama. My favorite picture of him is as a Marine,about to graduate basic training at Parris Island, in his dress blues. A handsome North Carolinian in that uniform with a bright smile, big brown eyes and friendly demeanor-he was quite a hell-raiser in his younger years from many accounts (something you'd never guess from looking at him or talking to him today). But the Marines turned him into a responsible adult pretty quick. I've always known him as a quiet but very intelligent man, almost completely self-taught in electronics and computers, and very good at fixing almost anything. His strength (physically and mentally) is a tribute to his training in the Marine Corps. A finer man I don't believe I will ever know.

  Marines are determined. 

 My uncle Wayne was also a Marine, back in the late 60's. He's my mother's younger brother and has always been special to me. He requested and got leave to come home to see me when I was born. While this may not sound like a big deal in 2012, back in 1969, this was a very hard thing to accomplish as the Marine Corps normally didn't give you leave for births unless it was your own child. Somehow, he worked it out and was able to come home. This meant a lot to my mama and she's mentioned it many times over the years. My uncle served in Viet Nam and while I would love to hear what he has to say about it, he never talks about it, not even to my mother. All she's ever told me were the names of the places he was at, and I know he had exposure to Agent Orange, for which he receives benefits from the VA. (and by the way, it took him DECADES to win that one...he's had health issues for many years.) My desire to know is not from a morbid fascination but rather as a lover of history and the desire to know the truth, not what a textbook company chooses to print. But that desire does not trump his privacy, so it is likely I will never know. I do know that I respect him immensely in addition to loving him very much.

Marines are capable and self-sufficient.

My grand-daddy was a Marine back in the late 30's, early 40's. He never talked much about his experiences in those days but I have heard a few stories. My grandfather, who we all called "Big Daddy" was indeed considered a big man at a few inches over 6 feet tall. His nickname was "Red," because (you guessed it) he had VERY red hair. He was a hard worker and often had to travel away from home in the years surrounding the Great Depression in order to find work to support his family. (Once, he worked as a guard at the Smithsonian in D.C. which I thought was very cool in itself.) My mama told me that when he was in the Marines, it was so cold one winter and they had run out of wool blankets so he had to learn to sew in order to make himself a quilt to keep warm. THAT I would have loved to see. :) He was an outstanding man that I was proud to call my grandfather and his experiences in the Marines contributed to him becoming the self-sufficient, capable man I knew him to be.

 Over the years, I met and became friends with some Marines who embodied these same characteristics and so many more. I am proud to know and call each of them my friends. They are many things: tender yet tough as nails...lovers and fierce warriors...friendly yet cautious with their trust...profane yet God-fearing. They are a contradiction in many ways, yet a good one. While I hold a great deal of love and admiration for all branches of our military and its members, there will always be a special love reserved for America's Marines. Semper Fidelis.