Semper Fi. You've probably seen this before but I couldn't help it....It is great!
Essence of a Marine
Somewhere between the security of childhood and the
insecurity of the second childhood, we find the Marine.
Marines are found everywhere; in bars, in cars, behind barns,
in holes, in fights, in trouble, running on the double. You will find
them in battle, on streets, overseas, in love, on leave, but mostly in debt.
Marines come in assorted sizes, colors, weights and stages of
sobriety, anger, misery and confusion. They come in cammi
green, brown, black, muddy, and sporting the native flora on their
helmets.
A Marine is laziness with a deck of cards, misery with a grin
on his face. Exhausted, sleeping in the mud, a penniless
millionaire, bravery with a beer in his hand, courage with a grain
of sense, he is the protector of America with a Playboy in his back
pocket.
A Marine is a composite. He is air cooled, alcohol operated,
foot propelled. He is cocky, conceited, high-strung and
self-centered, overbearing and considers himself underpaid. He is
shy as a fox, has the nerve of a dope addict, the energy of a turtle,
the brain of a rock, the stories of an old sailor, and the sincerity of
a liar. He has the appetite of a horse, the table manners of a
chimpanzee, and the aspirations of Casanova.
When a Marine wants something it is usually a three-day
pass, a light for his cigarette, his OWN field jacket, an extra
poncho liner (or anything else he can appropriate from supply), a
ten dollar loan, or someone to stand his duty.
He likes girls, women, females, ladies and members of the
opposite sex. He likes sex, beer, liquor, liberty, leave and
sixteen-thirty.
He dislikes answering letters, wearing his Alphas, standing
inspections, second lieutenants, getting up for reveille, Marine
Corps chow, close order drill, training, war, work, the day before
payday, and the curfew set by the parents of the girls he takes out.
No woman can tame him, no man can beat him. He is
unwilling, unreliable, irresponsible, impossible, and indestructible.
A Marine is a magical creature. You can shut him out of
your home, but not out of your heart. You can take him off of
your mailing list, but not out of your mind. You may as well give
in; he is yours. He is your brother, lover, friend or son. He is a
bright-eyed, good-for-nothing bundle of worries....
But a Marine..........
