Army Values & Frat House Rules

By Terri Messick

'When we boarded the plane from Baghdad, we did not leave the enemy behind. They sat in the seats beside us.' Entering the military as a mature woman provided unexpected challenges: not in the form of physical nor mental duress, but in the challenge to my long-held beliefs about the unequivocal nature of the individuals who volunteer for service. Admitting my own prejudice, watching the pedestal slowly crumble was my cross to bear. I never could have believed that my comrades - and my own blind idolization of all things military - would utterly fail me. My journey shines a light in some of the tunnels and bunkers of military secrets. The values - drilled into recruits with endless repetition - and rules are neither enforced nor respected. When they are enforced, it is with selective justice. My story illustrates the benefits of playing the fraternization game and the consequences of refusal. I would never have believed that my brigade would treat me as an enemy and leave me to feel as their prison of war. No one could have told me - I would not have believed - that my beloved and sanctified armed forces could, nearly as a whole, turn on me as they did.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1520769253
• ISBN13: 9781520769257
• Release Date: November 2017
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 132 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.3" x 6.0"