“Give respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor
is owed." ~ Romans 13:7
Under the wide brim of his ‘Smokey’
hat, perfectly squared-away uniform and almost caricature-like demeanor, Sergeant
Porter is one imposing figure. As a
drill instructor for India Company, 3rd Recruit Training Battalion, he’s with his
recruits every waking moment until graduation.
Putting on the belt and campaign cover transforms a regular
Marine into someone he probably feared as a new recruit himself. Now Porter understands how much time and
dedication his own drill instructor (DI’s) devoted to the job.
As a recruit, they seem downright psychotic. These men and women subject recruits to
endless hours of “incentivized training.” It's another way of saying abrupt bouts of
burpees and pushups.
They don’t even sound like normal people. They literally scream so hard that they can
pass out, give themselves hernias, or do serious and permanent damage to their
vocal cords. That's why they spend a lot
of time at DI school learning to project from their diaphragms in order to develop
that raspy "frog voice.”
It's masterful
performance art, but with a twist - the enormous personal responsibility they
feel for building maggots (slang for raw recruits) into disciplined Marines. Despite their gruff, borderline hostile
interaction with recruits, DIs are real people with real emotions and
tremendous dedication to molding young lives.
Sergeant Porter is one tough Marine. But even he couldn't say “no" when his
wife arranged a surprise photo shoot with their four-year-old daughter Ashley,
who was dressed like a princess for a special tea party.
Told only to show up in his uniform, he had no idea what
was going to happen until he showed up for the shoot. He was a bit hesitant at first but after a
little persuading, his wife was able to convince him. He’d do anything for Ashley.
Although the two are really close, Ashley often misses out
on one-on-one time with her Dad due to his rigorous work schedule, deployments,
and most recently his job as a drill instructor. So, with the Month of the Military Child approaching,
this seemed like a perfect time to arrange something special for them both.
The magical event was captured by a local photographer
surrounded by trees and foliage. There,
the two shared a magical tea party, sitting in tiny chairs across the table
from each other. Ashley wore a long
white, lace dress; her head topped with a crown of pink flowers.
The proud Mom and wife wanted pictures to help show that
military officers have softer sides to them and she also wants people to realize
how resilient military children are to have their parents away. It seems that’s just what we Americans need
to see on this Veterans Day as well.
Dear Lord, today we honor our veterans, who gave
their best when called upon to serve and protect our country. Bless them for their unselfish service in the
continual struggle to preserve our freedoms, our safety, and our country's
heritage. Amen
