Aging Capriciously

I heard this story from the Pastor at my wife’s church this past Sunday.  It was the day after Veterans Day, and it brought tears to my eyes.  I am not sure where the story is from but it will touch the heart.

The Misfit Soldier:

Once upon a time there was a young man who was born as a surprise to his parents.  Truth be told, neither parent was happy to have a new child.  Both parents were elderly and raising another child was seen as a burden.  Growing up, the young man had an atypical upbringing.  His dad, being older, never played ball with him or took him on any camping outings.  His mother did not dote on him and mostly seemed to merely tolerate his existence.  No one helped him with his homework or studies or even seemed to care whether he went to school.  He grew up not really feeling like he was part of a family.  He felt like a misfit.

During high school, he was bullied by the other boys who saw his lack of sports prowess as being girly.  He could not throw a ball or catch a ball.  He did not excel in any studies, and no one cared whether he joined any campus groups.  The young man could not wait to get out of high school.  He felt like a misfit there as well as at home.  Once he graduated, both parents were hoping he would leave home as soon as possible.  His dad suggested that he joined the army and took him down to the enlistment office.

The young man took the ASVAB tests at the Army recruitment office and passed them.  He then took a physical and passed that as well.  He signed many papers and was accepted into the US Army by two recruiters who did not seem to care whether he joined on not.  Along with several other recruits, he recited the Pledge of Allegiance and swore the oath to protect the United States of America.  He was given 45 dollars in ration coupons, a plane ticket and sent off by bus to take a plane out of the nearest airport to his training base at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Upon arrival at Fort Bragg, the young man was given the usual military greeting.  “Get your ass off that bus and get in line.  Keep your mouth shut and don’t ask any questions.  Do as I say.  You guys are like grass, and I am the lawn mower.  You are all dumb as shit.”

The other recruits merely shrugged their shoulders and off they trudged in some sort of order to the barber, uniform supply office, medical office, chow hall and then their assigned barracks.  Along the way, being laughed at by other recruits who had already been in basic training for a week or so.  Shouts were heard that they would never make it and they would be sorry they joined.  The more this hazing went on the more worried our young man became.  He finally went up to his Drill Instructor (DI) and told him that he did not feel very good.  This did not sit well with his DI who singled him out for some abusive name calling.  He shamed him as a sissy and weakling in front of his entire platoon.  Our young man began to feel like a misfit again and like he did not belong in the US Army.

The young man was uncoordinated, shy, reclusive, had two left feet and a difficult time with any physical exercises or activities.  The DI was constantly on his ass screaming instructions and abuse at him.  The other soldiers took a lead from the DI who seemed to delight in tormenting and making fun of our young man.  When the DI was not around, the other soldiers found many ways to make fun of the young man and generally enjoyed making his life even more difficult.

One day, a few of the pranksters in the platoon came up with an idea that brought smiles and laughs to the lips of the other recruits.  They would take a fake grenade to the next training activity and drop it in front of the young man after pulling the pin.  They told the DI about this prank and sad to say he said he would go along with it.  They all clapped each other on the back and proceeded to prepare the trick.

A few days later, the DI called the entire platoon out for “Grenade Training.”  They all marched off to a large, deserted field.  The DI told them to form a circle.  Standing in the middle of the circle the DI called out to one of the soldiers.  The DI handed the “fake” grenade to the soldier and told him to pull the pin and throw the grenade as far as he could. The soldier pulled the pin and started to fumble the grenade.  He dropped the grenade right in front of our misfit young man.

Every soldier there expected the young man to run or start screaming.  What happened next shocked the entire platoon.  In a split second, the young man had thrown his body over the grenade covering what he expected would be a blast that would kill or maim half the platoon.  The group of men stood there speechless.  No one laughed, smiled, or said a word.  Suddenly the Drill Instructor charged forward towards our young misfit.  He grabbed him in a massive bear hug and loudly spoke the following words: “Soldier, I am proud to know you and to have you in my platoon. You are one of the bravest soldiers I have ever met.”

The men in the platoon started clapping.  One by one they filed by the young man and told him what a brave soldier he was.  No one mentioned why the grenade did not go off or the practical joke that they had intended to play.  They were all ashamed of their behavior from the tip of their heads to the bottom of their feet.  As they greeted the young man, they told him what a privilege it was to know him and that they were also glad that he was in their platoon.

That day our misfit young man stopped feeling like a misfit.  He knew where he belonged.  He was now a proud soldier in the US Army.

• Have you ever felt like a misfit?
• What did it feel like?
• How did you overcome the feeling?