My son does not look happy in this photo.

I don't think you EVER forget your DI.  Its been 30+ years for me, joined as a 17 year old straight out of school.  Sometimes it feels like yesterday.  Our Infantry platoon is structured a little bit different from yours..  Our "section" is equivalent to your squad, and while you have a SSGT as platoon Sergeant, ours is just a regular Sergeant.  Never saw much of the Pl Sgt Or Pl Commander during basic.  Our section commander was a Cpl as opposed to a Sgt in a US squad.  Cpl or not, they were gods to us while we were at basic.  I went through in 1981, and even the section commanders had all been to Vietnam.

Yes indeed... I can not think of a negative thing to say about any of my Drill Sergeants. They were not easy, but they made a positive impact upon my life instilling their training. I thank them for that.

Seems like just yesterday when Mike was lamenting his son's decision to join the service during the height of the Global War on Terror. My son enlisted in the Army after graduating from Fort Knox High School in 2008 and already has two deployments to Afghanistan. During his last deployment with a UAV unit, they flew an American flag inside a UAV on my 50th birthday and sent me the flag, a plaque and a "Remove Before Flight" flag from the aircraft. The UAV got a pair of confirmed kills on that flight too.

As a DI, your son is probably having a lot of fun. In my last job before retirement at Knox, I had several drill sergeants that worked for me. They all enjoyed the duty; it is tiring and stressful, but rewarding. It's also a duty that you can take in small doses but would probably kill you and your family life if you had to do it for an entire career.

He's making memories that will last a lifetime for not only himself but for young men who will have many "fond" memories of their drill sergeant decades from now.

GM,,,,,,,I would give you one of mine if I could. I am one of the "lucky" types that has met more DI's than just the ones from boot camp. In addition to the DI's and the PC from my own Boot days, I had two Uncles that "did the DI thing",,,,,,,for the FUN OF IT!! (before they made Gunny)  I used to tease the one that I served under as my Gunny by saying "calm down, Gunny, your are just a plane captain again"

I am not kidding, they each took a tour as a DI just to relax from their "normal" lives in the Corps.

I wonder if "Dumpster Dilbert" is still a part of Basic Training,,,,,or if that is "too cruel" to do these days"  I had the good luck to meet my "Dilbert" later on after Basic was over,,,,,,that Sgt and I had a good laugh over it. (as soon as I stopped feeling as if I was seeing a ghost, that is)

We have met GMorrison?

TEN HUT ! ! Gee , it seems I remember doing something like that once .And no we didn't have those Camo Patterns either!

Frankly he looks like he's enjoying himself.

I have to say I have met a lot of people in life who do a lot of interesting things  , and while I haven't met Andrew I did meet you. So one degree of separation- I've never met a real USMC DI before as far as I know.

Better to go through life doing the unusual and challenging than the safe and easy way.

My daughter finished school this June and she's off to tackle the world.

These kids are great.

geez, Mike

about the only thing that saved me from having a "Hollywood Flashback" is the fact that we didn't have that camo pattern back in August 1975. (and the fact that is a brick wall in the background instead of curved and ribbed Quonset steel)

The Smokey Bear looks almost exactly the same as then, though.

Tell him an old Ramp Roach says OOOO Rahhhhh,,,,,,,,,,,,,and "Eyyyyee wanna be a Reconnnnn Ranggggger, eyyyyee wanna live a life of dannnggger"

lol

Rex