Desert Tough, page 1
Desert Tough
Katie Bonecutter
Contents
Disclaimer
Quote
Untitled
Talk Like a Marine
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Epilogue
Questions to Consider
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Disclaimer
This novel is entirely my own invention. Any similarity to real people or actual events is purely coincidental. The inspiration for this story has been drawn from decades of experiences and numerous interactions with people worldwide.
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“The official flower of the military child is the dandelion. Why? The plant puts down roots almost anywhere, and it’s almost impossible to destroy. It’s an unpretentious plant, yet good looking. It’s a survivor in a broad range of climates. Military children bloom everywhere the winds carry them. They are hardy and upright. Their roots are strong, cultivated deeply in the culture of the military, planted swiftly and surely. They’re ready to fly in the breezes that take them to new adventures, new lands, and new friends.”
* * *
Author Unknown
To all of the military kids, past and present (especially my three siblings and my four incredible children):
* * *
With this book, I honor your service, celebrate your courage, and acknowledge that your resiliency is hard-earned. You are truly some of the most inspiring people I have ever known and I hope you can see glimpses of your exceptional strength in this story.
Talk Like a Marine
AAV
This acronym stands for “Amphibious Assault Vehicle,” more commonly called amtracs in the Marine Corps. These landing vehicles are fully tracked and very heavy. The same as tanks, if they were to drive on the normal asphalt road, they would tear it up, so special “tank trails” have been designed for them to travel around the base. Often times the trails are made of dirt, but when those paths cross over asphalt roads, special concrete that has been reinforced with steel is used to create a special tracked vehicle crossing.
Artillery
This broad term refers to the units responsible for everything related to shooting cannons and rockets in the Marine Corps and Army. Everyone on base is aware when they are out training because of the loud impacts and subsequent vibrations of the projectiles they are shooting.
Barracks
Similar to apartment buildings or college dormitories, barracks are the buildings on base that house single Marines and sailors.
Challenge Coin
Made from metal and traditionally round, these decorative coins can be molded into the shape of a unit’s logo or into a particular design. They can be purchased by any member of the unit. It is considered a token of utmost respect and honor to receive the a coin from the commanding officer as a gift.
Change of Command
This phrase refers to the formal military ceremony that occurs when the leadership of a specific unit turns over. The old commander hands over the reigns of the unit to the new commander publicly in this ceremony.
Colors
Every morning as the American flag is raised and every evening as the American flag is lowered, bugle music is broadcast over the loudspeakers on base. There is a warning bugle call five minutes before colors sounds. During colors, if you are outdoors on the base, you stop what you are doing and face the nearest American flag as a sign of respect. If you are in the military, you stand at attention. After it’s over, there is another bugle call to let everyone know they can carry on.
Commissary
This is the term for the grocery store on base.
Field Op
Short for “field operation,” this phase just means that a unit is going out into the field to train. The unit has to navigate through whatever terrain it finds itself in—the beach, the woods, the desert, etc. The Marines have to practice setting up their equipment and doing their jobs without many comforts like showers, beds, hot meals, etc. It requires sleeping outside no matter the weather and working around the clock. It’s tiring work, but good practice that helps them improve their skills and enhance their ability to work as a team.
Medevac
This is a shortened form of “medical evacuation.” It simply means that someone needs to be rescued due to a medical emergency and taken out of the field to a real hospital for further treatment. The Marines have Navy corpsmen (medics) with them in the field whenever they are training, but sometimes someone needs more help than can be given out in the field.
MP
This acronym stands for “Military Police.” There are Marines whose job it is to serve as the police on base. They protect the people and the property aboard the installation.
Chapter 1
The first day of school stinks, no matter what. I don’t know too many kids who are stoked to wake up early, surrender their summer freedom, and settle into a new classroom. It’s even harder when you’re the new kid. Believe me—I would know. This is my fourth school in the past six years, so you could say that I am somewhat of an expert at being the new kid. You might be wondering who my family is running from, but this is actually pretty normal in our life. My dad is a US Marine, and we move every couple of years. Sometimes it’s just across the state, and other times it’s across the country or even across the world.
Yep, I’ve been the new kid many times before. . .the one who sits alone for lunch in the cafeteria and the last one chosen at recess. I figure, I know what’s coming today, so I don’t bother ignoring the loudspeakers around base sounding colors. I get out of bed, psyching myself up to start over yet again, when a cold, wet nose nudges me. Smiling, I reach down to pat Radar, my dog, on the head.
“Good morning, boy,” I say, scratching him just behind the ears. He beams at me and wags his tail, happy that no matter where we live, he gets loved on just the same.
Radar’s a Belgian Malinois who failed out of police training. As the story goes, he has such a good sniffer that, rather than limit himself to finding lost humans, drugs, and explosives, he excelled at finding the trainers’ lunches, the hidden treats in the closets, and stinky socks in lockers. Needless to say, police work wasn’t his thing and he was dropped from the police academy for lack of self-control, but he is an amazing pet. We adopted him three years ago, and he’s been the best addition to the family yet. I mean, my sister is great, but Radar is the best. He’s so dependable and so loving. No matter where we live or how much my dad works, I know I can count on Radar. He’s spent many nights in the hallway outside my sister’s and my bedroom doors, something that makes me feel better when my dad is gone.
Anyways, judging by the fact that he’s following me like a shadow this morning, he must sense my anxiety. No matter how many times I start over, it doesn’t get any easier; I just know what to expect. Up until this point, though, my sister, Lily, and I have been at the same school. She’s only a year and a half younger, so we normally stick together—at least for the first week while we get our bearings. But not today. Today, I start middle school and she’ll be next door at the elementary school. No friendly face to smile at me in the hallway or as we swap places at recess. I wouldn’t dare admit it to her, but I wish we were walking into school together.
With some of these worries swirling around in my head, I look out the window and take in the landscape—huge sandy expanses for as far as the eye can see, broken up only by the mountains in the distance and the singular body of water visible in the entire area, Lake Bandini. All summer, there have been different types of water birds paddling around. They look very out of place in the desert—like they took a wrong turn and instead of the ocean, they found this random puddle in the middle of nowhere and plopped down thinking, this will do! While very picturesque, Lake Bandini is actually part of the sewage treatment plant on base, and it does nothing to add to the vibe around here. It smells terrible—like worse than awful—and its widespread stench is quite possibly the most famous part of this base!
The base, formally known as Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, is located in a valley of sorts, sandwiched in between the mountainous training grounds on the base and the mountains of Joshua Tree National Park. The town just outside the base is called Twentynine Palms, but there are definitely more than 29 palm trees out there. I am positive, because I counted as we drove into the base when we first arrived two months ago.
There are some bushes and cacti (that’s a real word!) scattered around, but for the most part the sandy landscape is wide open with postcard perfect skies—you know the type—pure blue with puffy white clouds that look like they were created by an artist. The sun shines pretty much every day here which is nice, but it also packs some serious heat! In the two months we’ve been here, it’s been so stinkin’ hot that we haven’t managed to do much exploring. The other kids in our neighborhood seem acclimated to the heat, but by nine in the morning, I am drenched with sweat when I walk Radar and don’t particularly
Mom is always telling me to look for the silver linings in hard situations. So silver lining today: extreme sunniness and extreme heat means at least I won’t be worrying about dreary rain clouds on my first day of school. I take a second to brace myself, pat Radar on the head again, and make my way downstairs ready to play my part in Mom’s first day traditions.
My mom has had these little first-day-of-the-school-year traditions for as long as I can remember. They happen no matter where we live. She always lets us pick a special first day of school breakfast and this year, Lily and I chose apple pie. I think her traditions are kind of silly, but they matter a lot to her. And, if I’m totally honest, it is kind of nice to know what to expect even if the house and the school are new. While I may be willing to eat pie for my mom’s sake, I am definitely hoping to escape her mandatory first day of school photo. But no such luck. She catches up to me just as I am reaching the front door. So close, I think to myself.
“There’s no way you are getting out of this, Diego,” she chastises and positions me in order to get a real cactus in the shot. “It’s going to help you remember this day,” she says.
“There’s no way I’ll forget it,” I assure her. Lily nods and takes her place next to me. We smile and I take a second to glance down at Lily. She looks like she’s going to burst into tears and I really don’t want her to cry so I give Lily a short hug. I lift her chin up so she’s looking me in the eyes.
“Hang tough,” I remind her. Directing my attention to my mom, I say, “Love you, Mom.” I give her a quick squeeze, hustle out the door, and hurry to get to the bus stop on time. On the bus ride across the desert to my newest school, which just so happens to be the only middle school in the area, I try to get mentally prepared. I remind myself that first days are tough, but as my dad always tells me—I am tougher. Let’s hope he’s right, I think, as I exit the bus and make my way into the school.
I make it to my first classes of the day without issue, manage to get into my locker without asking for help and, dare I say, I’m feeling pretty good leading into lunch. I grab my lunch from my locker and head to the cafeteria. As I look around for a good area to sit—one that’s not dirty or crowded, a tall, athletic boy approaches me. I’ve seen him in the hall and he seems to know everybody. He’s been hanging out with, what appear to be the popular kids at this school. He invites me to sit with him at one of the tables. Not exactly what I was expecting from first day, but I’ll take it.
“I’m Dante,” he says by way of introduction. “What’s your name?”
“Diego,” I respond.
“How long have you lived in Twentynine Palms?” Dante asks me and immediately a sense of relief washes over me—he didn’t ask me where I am from, one of the hardest questions for a military kid to answer. What the asker is looking for is a “city, state” answer, but it’s not that cut and dry for me. I can tell you where my parents are from (they’re from the same small town in Texas), I can tell you where I was born (but we only lived there for three months before we moved), or I can tell you where I lived the longest. None is really what the asker is looking for. But, Dante asked me how long I’ve lived here—like he assumes I’m new, he gets it, and isn’t going to make me play twenty questions.
“Just two months,” I answer.
“I’ve only been here for a year,” he shares. “It’s not as bad as everyone says. Give it a chance.” The conversation continues. He tells me that his dad is also a Marine and that he lives on base as well.
“Really? I didn’t see you on the base bus this morning,” I say, stating my observation. He shoots me a quick, sheepish grin in response.
“I overslept,” he admits. “Not quite the picture perfect first day of school my mom was going for. She drove me in and we barely made it on time!” I laugh, imagining how much my mom would have appreciated having her first day of school traditions abandoned in the frenzy to get to school on time. The bell rings and we stand to go our separate ways.
As we are walking out, I say to Dante, “It was nice to meet you. Thanks.” He smiles, a knowing smile. He’s been the new kid before and understands how nice it is to be asked, rather than ask, to sit with someone at lunch.
I see Dante again as soon as I enter my last class of the day, physical science. I smile and make my way back to sit near him. This is hands-down my favorite subject. I love everything related to science and engineering and I’ve been counting down all day to this period. After some necessary introductions from the teacher, Mr. Roberts, we are all released to visit some STEM stations he has set up around the room. I find myself with Dante at the engineering table attempting to build a bridge that can hold a five-pound weight using only newspaper, drinking straws, and tape. We spend a few minutes tossing around ideas during which time I find out that Dante’s favorite subject is science as well. Additionally, I learn that Mr. Roberts has the reputation for being the best teacher in the school.
Time passes quickly and before long, the bell rings. Mr. Roberts informs us that we will have a special assembly next week with a park ranger. Since it’s not during his class period, we will need to get a permission slip signed if we want to attend. He stands by the door and hands out the forms as we are leaving. Dante and I walk out together, but he heads off to a meeting for prospective football team members and I make my way to the bus. As I get on the bus, I think of Lily and hope that she’s doing okay. I hope that she’s found someone kind to sit with at lunch and has gotten the name of at least one other classmate.
A short time later, I arrive home to reassure my mom that I am alive and well. I survived another first day school as the new kid. In fact, I did more than survive the day—I actually think I made my first friend.
Chapter 2
The rest of the school week passes pretty quickly. They say time flies when you’re having fun. I’m not sure I’d categorize finding my footing in this new school as fun, but it’s definitely keeping me busy. Before I know it, the weekend is here. A large part of my family’s weekend goes into gearing up for my dad to leave for the field. That’s both the good part and the bad part of living where you work, I guess. Dad says this is some of America’s best training grounds. Other military units from all over the country even come here to train and prepare for deployments. In Twentynine Palms, the temperatures are extreme, the terrain is very challenging to navigate, and the high elevation is physically demanding. It’s no wonder the troops stationed here are in such great shape! They are able to train 24/7 and right now it’s my dad’s turn. Luckily, this is just a short field op and he should be back in two weeks.
No matter how long he is going for, though, the preparation is mostly the same. Mom tries to get laundry done so he can pack what he needs and she always runs by the store to buy him snacks like beef jerky, tuna packets, instant coffee, and Twizzlers. Dad loves Twizzlers anytime, but especially in the field because they don’t melt all over the wrapper! Dad’s gear is kept in olive green footlockers in our garage to keep the local pests out of them. In addition to lizards galore, there are all kinds of rodents that burrow out here in the desert and the last thing you would want is to find out that your Marine Corps-issued gear has become a rat nursery! Dad has to assemble his helmet and flak jacket. He ensures he has all of the equipment he needs to bring with him like his knife, his head lamp, his camp stool, and his sleeping bag.
