A Letter from Patrick

I got a letter today from Patrick that gives a great picture of how he's doing and what his days look like. The following are excerpts from the letter.


"It's been a pretty good day today. Other than the rain, the weather was relatively warm and it cleared up in the afternoon. This morning we rucked about 1 1/2 miles out to do the team building exercises. It was a lot of fun...Our platoon has bonded really well, which helps us to more easily accomplish tasks. I'm in the 1st squad and would like to become squad leader or hopefully platoon guide as BCT continues.

"I got selected to march in a special ceremony next week for the changing of the command...We are finally starting to look, act, think, and feel like real soldiers. A lot of guys are counting down the days to graduation. I'm just focusing on Red Phase right now; specifically getting through the phase tests...

"I finally got your [and other people's] letters today. It was extremely encouraging...The reason that it is good to hear about daily tasks is because it reminds me of where I've come from. To tell you the truth, until yesterday I had kind of forgotten about what a normal day in civilian life looks like. We've kind of been in a weird black hole where you begin to think in your subconscious that you've always been here.  I would liken it to the people of the underworld in The Silver Chair [by C.S. Lewis].

"I was glad to hear that a lot of people have stayed in contact with you while I've been gone. Thanks for the quotes from Eisenhower and the passage from Exodus. They were really encouraging. I'm working hard to be really sociable without compromising my values. This environment can make that very tricky sometimes..."

"So here's some information about Ft. Leonard Wood. It's huge! Imagine the campus of UA times 20 or more. I still haven't seen all of the parts of the base, and I probably won't because I'll only be here for training. But some of the cool things about the base is seeing black hawks fly over and armored convoys from time to time. There's always a company marching around. The Marine Corps [Military Police] school is also here, which makes me laugh because it only more solidifies for me that the Army is better...

"We got our [Interbalistic Body Armor and Army Combat Helmet] last week. It felt really awesome when I first put both of them on. I was able to spiritually connect with the centuries of warriors that have come before me. I was immediately ready to rock and roll.

"Please pray for me that my leadership skills would grow and that I would grow... so that I would feel more comfortable taking initiative in my platoon...Pray that I win the hearts and minds of my [Drill Sergeants] and my platoon and that I would look for opportunities to lead."

Daily Scheudle: Red Phase

I got a letter from Patrick today that outlined their daily schedule.  I decided to put in on the blog so you could have a better idea of what Patrick's daily schedule looks like (more or less).

4:10- Wake up early to make their beds and do personal hygeine (shave, brush teeth, etc.)
4:30- Official wake up time.  The Drill Sergeant Roes comes in, turns on the lights, tells a few jokes, and instructs them on their first formation.
4:50- First formation or PT formation.  They have to be dressed in their PT uniforms with their flashlights, canteens, road guard something (I couldn't read this very well), and their gun. This is when formation officially starts, so they have to be there standing at attention no later than 4:40.
5:00- 1SG comes and receives a report  from each platoon.  They need to know how many people that are in their platoon and how many weapons they have been assigned.
5:10-6:00- PT.  Nothing strenuous so far, but this is coming from Patrick.  :)  sometimes they do interval runs.
6:00-6:15- Change clothes for breakfast formation.
6:15-6:45- March 1/2 a mile to the dining hall.  They stand in line for about 20 minutes and eat in about three.  Then they break for formation.
6:45-7:00- March to instructional area.
7:00-9:00- Block on instruction.  so far, it's been "death by power point."
9:00-9:15- Bathroom break
9:15-10:45- Block of instruction
10:45-11:00- Formation for lunch and march to lunch
11:00-11:30- Lunch
11:30-11:40- March to classroom
11:40-11:55- Bathroom break
11:55-2:00- Block of instruction
2:00-2:15 Bathroom break
2:15-4:00- Block of instruction
4:00-4:20- March to the barracks
4:20-5:00- Meet in the platoon bays for specific platoon instructions
5:00-5:15- Secure gear and clean bay
5:15-5:30- Dinner formation and march to chow
5:30-6:00- Dinner
6:00-6:20- March back to barracks and fall into platoon bays
6:20-7:30- Platoon instruction/pep talk/corrective action
7:30-8:30- Personal hygeine
8:30- Lights out

As Time Goes By

I cannot believe that Patrick has been gone for three weeks.  In one sense, it's hard to believe that it has been that long.  Teaching school has kept me quite busy, and my friends have been wonderful!  I can honestly say that I had no idea how my time would fly by during the day.

On the other hand, it feels like his return will never come.  As each hour goes by, and I am glued to my phone in case he calls, I cannot say that time moves quickly.

Through this experience, I can say that I truly understand the fervor with which we are to wait for the return of Jesus.  I know that Patrick loves me more than any other earthly thing.  He is gone from me now to prepare a financial future for our family.  Although I miss him terribly, I understand why he must go and what my job is while he is gone.  I am to keep our house in order, keep our friends up to date on his activity, and faithfully wait for his return.  But perhaps the hardest part of Patrick's absence is keeping our relationship strong through mostly indirect communication.  We talk on the phone for a few minutes each week.  All other conversation is through letters.  I have found that I must make time in my day to write Patrick.  It is not always the most gratifying thing to do with my time because there is not immediate response.  But it is absolutely necessary that we stay in close contact with each other if we are to smoothly transition back into a shared life when he returns.

Our experience as Christians is not so different from this.  Jesus, who loves us enough to lay down His life for us, has joined us in the unbreakable union of salvation. However, He has gone, for a time,  to prepare a place for us with Him.  While He is gone, we have a job of our own.  We are to keep our spiritual house in order, by removing sin from our lives and working towards a more holy life.  We are to keep everyone involved in his movements, whether that's encouraging a Christan friend with scripture, or sharing the gospel with someone who has never heard of Jesus.  We are also to eagerly await His return, counting down the days until we can be united.  However, for me, the hardest part of my spiritual life with Jesus is keeping our relationship strong through communication.  I do not always make time to spend with the Lord through reading my Bible and prayer.  Yes, I may pray several small prayers throughout the day, and that is good, but what am I doing to deepen my bond with Jesus?  One huge comfort is that Jesus is unchanging, and He does not depend on my effort to stay connected to me.  But I must make a more concerted effort to spend time with Him if I am to stay close to Him.

Yes, as time goes by, God is teaching me a lot.  Although I do not wish for time away from Patrick, I am glad that the Lord is using this to teach me how to love Him and serve Him more.

First Week of Basic

Patrick called me tonight at 7:30!  He said that the first week of Basic Training has "been a blast."    (He would say that!)  They've been doing a lot of physical training because some of the privates were not in proper shape.  Patrick says that they will get to the "soldiering" soon.  They were issued their M-4s yesterday, and he really liked that!  He also likes his drill sergeant, who was a special forces candidate.

They have been given an entire extra minute to eat now. :)  They now average about three minutes of actual eating time.  Patrick said that the other day he only had about thirty seconds.  Of course, he sees this like a game, so it's lots of fun for him. The food is really good, which I was glad to hear!

He's getting about six hours of sleep per night, so that's pretty good.  Now that does not count the nights that they wake them up with a bull horn for a midnight run.

I'm getting his address in the next day or so.  I'm not going to post in on the blog, so if you want it, let me know.  He said he would love to get letters from everyone.  He would especially like some motivational quotes and encouraging verses.

A Brief Talk

Patrick called me today!  We only talked for 21 seconds.  He called to say that he was in Day 0 of basic training and that it was a lot of fun.  He sounded good, but he said to keeppraying for him.  Wake up is at 0430 (4:30AM).  Please keep praying for his strength and stamina!

The First Phone Call

Patrick called today!  Ok, so this is not exactly the first phone call, but today was the first time we got to talk.  He called me at school on Friday, but he only had time to say that he was almost finished with reception and they would soon head out to basic.  Today he had more time to tell me about what he's done so far.

They arrived in Missouri at around 2:00 AM on Tuesday.  They were briefed until 3:30 then sent to bed.  Their wake up call was at 4:30 AM, and they stayed up until 2100 (9:00PM)!  Things leveled out after that. 

Their cafeteria time is also interesting.  He said that when they are getting their food, they have to always carry their tray with two hands.  By the time they sit down, they only have about 2 1/2 minutes to eat.  Does this bother him?  Not at all!  His words were, "it's actually a lot of fun." 

They are divided into six groups, and Patrick is the "bay leader" for one of the groups.  I know they filter any questions through him, and I believe that he is responsible for their actions.

Church was good today, he said.  He has also been allowed to keep his bible, and he has been so far been able to read it daily.

Patrick sounded really good on the phone. He was thankful for everyone's prayers and asked that we keep praying for him.  I already can't wait until next week when we get to talk again!

What He's Doing

**Patrick is not in this picture.**

Here is a summary of what Patrick has been and will be doing for the next couple of weeks.

• Your Soldier will arrive at a reception station at one of the military installations.  They are assigned to a unit and will  undergo around 4 days of in-processing.  
• Your Soldier will complete administrative and logistical processing, receive a haircut, have uniforms issued, and have a personnel record file created.  Additionally, Soldiers will have medical, dental screenings, and records created.
• All Soldiers in the first few days will also begin learning the Army Values.  The Army wants to continue building on the values that are already instilled within each individual and give them common ground, beginning their transformation from civilian to Soldier.  These Army Values are loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage.
• Basic Combat Training, also known as BCT, is an unique challenge that few Americans have experienced, it is a significant time in their life.  The Basic Combat Training experience is meant to be rigorous and challenging.  During this time period, individuals are assisted to adapt to a new career and life for their families and themselves.  A typical BCT day is early mornings, long days with information overload, and late nights.  
• The BCT experience is designed to assist a Soldier through a transformation that yields experience and skills required in today’s Army.  We are confident that as a Soldier progresses through training, he or she will grow in self-confidence, individual knowledge, and physical strength.  Led by Drill Sergeants, your Soldier will have leaders that are confident, strong, and will never require your Soldier to do anything they will not do themselves.  This group of Drill Sergeants and support personnel will be with your Soldier from the time they arrive to their graduation date from Basic Combat Training.