Under Honorable Conditions…
November 5, 2019
Ryan C. Ayars, United States Navy As we lie to fake Dreams of black irises sing Angels dancing among death A rhythmic step, fear A vitreous passenger Casting mind shadows Trails of tiny web Floating in clouds Time and scribbled lines Forgotten familiar mirrors Of reflecting oppression Aggression, aggressionJoining The Navy: Interview Excerpt
November 5, 2019
Greg Arey, United States Navy The detailers wanted me to be a cryptology tech. They said, “You have to go take this Morse Code test.” So they took me to the basement under the building. And they said, “You go down here, and you take this test.” Well, they gave me the test, and I … Read More Head Held High
November 5, 2019
Kristen Wilkerson, United States Marine Corps I joined the Marine Corps looking for a challenge. I wanted to open doors for a new career and longed to have a positive impact on the world around me. Looking back five years later, I realize I found all that I originally sought, but I’ve also found something … Read More Speaking Up
November 5, 2019
Catherine Ulrich, United States Marine Corps It’s early February, I am in the third trimester of my pregnancy with my second child, and I am a lance corporal in the United States Marine Corps. I work in a small shop of three other Marines and a building that only has one other female; her name … Read More Home
November 5, 2019
Scott Simpson, United States Army Family Member The feeling of comfort and safety has an enormous impact on what home is to some people. Home is not just a place of safety, but for some it is the cultural background, the experiences of life, and a place to return to and return to that feeling. … Read More Behind A Smile
November 5, 2019
Corey Pomeroy, United States Army, United States Marine Corps I’m not depressed. I can still smile at pretty things, And laugh when jokes are funny. I can still talk to people, And enjoy nice days. But when I go inside, When I am alone, There is something broken. And I fall into a sadness … Read More The Dependant
November 5, 2019
John Metzger, Air Force Family Member As a boy, I thought a lot about war. It was a romantic type of thinking that goes along with building model fighter jets and green army men facing tanks and artillery of plastic. But when my father, an Air Force Major, went away for over a year, he … Read More Art by Kevin M. Leach
November 5, 2019
Kevin M. Leach was a Sergeant in the United States Army, 82nd Airborne. He was a Battlefield Communication Team Chief and served overseas for Operation Enduring Freedom 9 (OEF 9) and Operation Enduring Freedom 10 (OEF 10). Kevin is a Purple Heart Recipient. He says, “I saw more of Afghanistan than I cared to – … Read More It’s the Simple Things
November 5, 2019
Harrison Foust, United States Marine Corps The time I was in Djibouti, Africa, it was just my fellow Marines and me. We were out in the desert and not a building or any type of light was within miles. We didn’t even have our tents at this time, and we were just sitting in the … Read More That’s My Gun
November 5, 2019
Greg Givens, United States Marine Corps That’s my gun On permanent display my company, A co 2-504 PIR captured it 3rd platoon. My platoon it’s sitting in a museum forever and it’s there in a little corner with the story and a quote from my intelligence report I’m staggered still processing “frying bacon,” as my … Read More 