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Location: DownByTheRiver, Central Iowa, United States

Husband of the world's most wonderful wife, father of the world's four most brilliant children, grandfather to the world's eight most beautiful granddaughters and two handsomest grandsons

Friday, June 17, 2005

All Good Things Must Come To An End

On April 13, 1970 the RRR joined the United States Army. The story here is absolutely true and only shows the oddities of chance.
In basic training at Ft. Lewis, Washington was a drill instructor named Sgt. Stone. He loved to teach P.E.. He would stand up on the little platform as the whole company did push ups and later other exercises and work us until we were shaking, then leave us in an uncomfortable position, such as half way through a push up in the “front leaning rest” position at the count of 1 and we weren't allowed to collapse to the ground till he said, “two”.
When he had over a hundred trainees crying and moaning and ready to give up, he would shout, “All good things must come to an end................... TWO!” and we would fall to the ground using our last breaths to cuss him. But the Great Wheel comes around.

About a year later I was on a little “mountain” close to Laos about to get overrun by a brigade of North Vietnamese Regulars. A platoon of cavalry came up the hill at the last minute to save us and make this blog possible. We fought off the bad guys all night long. But I noticed one of those soldiers was very familiar. I walked up behind where he was aiming his M16 down the hill over a berm of dirt and stuck my finger in his back and said, “All good things must come to an end.” Sgt. Stone froze, and I laughed at him and told him I was glad to see him. We did some pretty good work that night and I never expected to see him again.

Turn the clock up to 1981. I was in the Army Reserve doing my summer training at Ft. Bliss, Texas. I was an orderly in the hospital. I walked into the patient lounge on the ward and guess who was sitting watching TV? I eased up behind him and stuck my finger in his back. “All good things must come to an end.”. He put up his hands and surrendered. I told him not to. I owe my life, as do thousands of other G.I.'s, to drill instructors like Sgt. Stone, who took rag tag punks and made men of us.

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