fact or fiction
Is it fact or merely fiction? Fact or Fiction explores the myths and beliefs we hold about the military and the physical, logistical, emotional and moral obstacles involved.
Look Away
Neck deep in the grave, Sam Watkins paused at the clatter of an approaching supply wagon. Covered with sweat and caked with red Tennessee soil, he had dug without a break for most of the late August morning. He leaned the spade in a corner of the rectangular hole and scratched his dark beard, listening to the sounds of the world above. He wanted a chew from his knapsack, but decided he couldn't afford the moisture it took to spit.
By Steven Thomas Howell6 years ago in Serve
My Rude Awakening
I was not always a good kid. In fact, I was very bad when I was young. I started my military service at the age of sixteen. Yes, most kids who served in the Army were eighteen, but there were a lot of kids who were sixteen and seventeen that served to. At one time the courts could order you to serve in the military in exchange for prison time. When that happened, your age did not count. They did what they wanted with you. After all, you were a prisoner. That’s how I got into the military; I messed up and got caught.
By Rocky Emily6 years ago in Serve
War and Roses
The package arrived on a Tuesday. Knowing that I preferred watching the real world over daytime television, one of the nurse’s aides had been kind enough to push my wheelchair as close as he could to the broad front window. I read his name tag carefully — Jackson, it read — and thanked him, but we both knew that by dinner I would forget it. It was a dance we did every day, my failing mind and I.
By Virginia Kruta6 years ago in Serve
Hometown Hero
He walked into the clinic for his volunteer shift. He was the jack of all trades when he did the volunteer work for the clinic. It seemed like they never had enough hands to go around. He’d empty the trash, restock supplies for the nurses, and occasionally do his favorite part of the gig and that was talking up the patients. He also got to learn how to heal. Granted he didn’t have the medical training so he could volunteer to treat patients, but he could volunteer and learn all he could from the doctors and the nurses. He relished the opportunity. He never knew when he decided that he wanted to help people through medicine, but just always knew that is what he was supposed to do.
By Daryl Benson6 years ago in Serve
Final Correspondence
The sound of the doorbell startled my steady hand causing a scribble on the letter ‘a’ I was writing. I let out a sigh, admiring my awkward checkmark looking symbol as I set the pen and black journal down on the table. My $20,000 contest-winning plan will have to wait until later. Rising from my chair and making my way to the front door I squint to see through the dark frosted glass. I could see the figure of a well-postured man, and it looked like he was wearing a uniform. Feeling my heart quicken, my steps increased to match the beat. Could it really be? But he’s home so early.
By Michelle Pattison6 years ago in Serve
Entangled
Indian Officers Training Academy, also known as IOTA, was gearing up for a new batch of cadets. In the wee hours of the morning, an array of young graduates from all over the country were present at the campus for the interview that would decide their future.
By Aliya Siddiqui6 years ago in Serve
Ash Butterflies
Ash Butterflies 1. “Love you, have a good day,” Bulluck said to his daughter as she shut the door to their Ford Escape. She did not say anything in return, but that was the standard for her. She did smile back to her father, then turned and crossed over the old crumbling sidewalk onto the tar-covered parking lot of her school. A gentle rain was falling from the drab gray sky, just another 4th grader’s school day in West Seattle.
By jason rummer6 years ago in Serve
The Moon's Permission
All things considered, Gael did not feel like a lawyer. He felt like a fraud. These weren’t feelings he could listen to when Jack was present. If he lost Jack’s respect, he’d have lost everything. Sitting there in that cab on the way to the jail to meet his first serious criminal, nay, capital case, he wished very much for a flask of whiskey that Jack hadn’t done away with already. Damn choirboy.
By Duointherain6 years ago in Serve
Somebodys' Killer
It was hot in Iraq in August. Much hotter than Georgia this same time a year. Some would say that is not fair though because the heat in these two places are two different types of heat. To Anthony though, heat was heat, and Iraq was the worst. He had lived in the desert most of his life. He lived in Palm Springs for many years and had experienced what he thought was the worst. Of course, he was a kid then and was not wearing 40 pounds of military gear.
By anthony Calla6 years ago in Serve
A Soldiers Account
Ever since I could remember I had always wanted to be a soldier, I would listen to my Father's Stories about when he was fighting in the Spanish-American war in 1898. Not all the stories were good ones, the reason I wanted to be a soldier like my Father wasn't the stories of the killing and the horror's he saw, but the fighting next to the men he called Brothers.
By Sean Frederiksen6 years ago in Serve
Hold onto Life
The gleaming stainless steel exterior of the 24/7 Extremist Diner in Wilmington, Delaware didn’t attract the usual crowd. This morning in August 1990, the tiny diner became the setting for a most unusual event. Most of the time, cops came there on their late night shifts with both beaming smiles and gruff mugs, but they did not appear this morning. The dancehall crowd sometimes came through with their beads of sweat and marijuana on their breath. They would distance themselves from the police. Neither appeared now. And of course at this late hour of three am, (or early to some) a most distressing occurrence befell the diner. Where everything usually worked like the female wait staff wore who extra small shirts and the males donned huge 3X tees all seemed well. It was extremist, right?
By Skyler Saunders6 years ago in Serve
