You're born and your parents and siblings are what you have. God stuck you with them and them with you. You try and make the best of what God gave you. That's how simple life really is. Who named these nuns anyway? They were far from being saints so why did they get to be named Sister Saint anything? A drum and bugle corps is not a band. A drum and bugle corps is just what it says-drums and bugles. God had his own plan for Memere because about three hours after I found my grandfather, Memere died right there on that same couch.

President Reagan said, "Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But the marines don't have that problem. Every Marine is first and foremost, a Rifleman. Murphy's law was always with us. If it could happen to us, it did and it would. What the hell is this bucket for and why do they call it a Fire Bucket anyway? Don't they have any of those big red trucks around to put out fires?

The Marine Corps attitude was to tear us down anyway they could and, supposedly, build us back up as Marines. At my age, these are supposed to be the best years of my life. Where in hell, in this God forsaken place, did these kids get a can of coke? I was never so fucking scared in my life but I knew I had to keep going. I couldn't let this fear inside me get the best of me. I am in the prime of my life, twenty years old, what a f--king joke. We were the lucky ones. We survived this night.

Actually, how lucky were we, really? This will haunt each of us forever. I was in my marine uniform, and these assos were calling me names. One girl spit on me and called me a "baby killer." All I can say is that I proudly did my duty for the Corps and my Country. I never asked for anything in return other than to be respected for doing my duty. A Veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America," for an amount of "up to and including my life.