Saturday I went to a Memorial day/Reunion party at the house of a few Army friends. They wanted to host something for all of the troops that we had deployed with. It’s a great idea and I am glad that they have been putting these things together.

About 30 people from the unit showed up. Some are still in the 341st MP unit but most of us have gotten out. It was great to see all their faces again. People made the drive as far away as SoCal.

Many have gone into law enforcement. Easy to understand based on the fact that we lived and breathed Military Police life under the worst possible conditions and got more experience in a year than some officers get in their entire careers.

People were gathered in the living room, kitchen and in the garage in little groups. All talking about what they’ve been doing the past few years and talking about the good and bad we shared in Iraq. I just enjoyed talking to everyone. These men and women are some of the greatest people I know.

They feel like an extended family to me. I call the two guys I supervised my kids, though they are both obviously adults. They joined a few years after me. Being in a position of leadership and knowing that someone else was relying on me for guidance and support, made me ‘grow up’ in ways that I wasn’t expecting. Then there are my brothers and sisters. The people that I spent my entire time in the unit with. We grew in ranks together and shared a lot of good times. We even had a few we called dad and grand-dad. We were all one big happy family with M16s, grenades and Humvees.

Seeing all of the familiar faces again brought back so many memories. We had some beers and some good food. We watched the UFC fight on pay-per-view. We did a bunch of laughing and even some good old trash talking, but it was the best few hours I have had in a long time.

Thank you everyone. Happy Memorial Day.

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