Discover What Sets It Apart from the Rest.

Over the years some of my friends have asked me, “What is Soldier: A Memoir about.?” No doubt many readers have asked themselves that same question while deciding whether to purchase a copy. The simple answer to this question is it details the journey of an ill-prepared boy through twenty years of his life following his graduation from high school.

It not a book about fame or glory but about the harshness of life and the effort it takes to succeed against all life throws at you. When I graduated from high school, things looked bleak. I was naive, lack little self-esteem and endured being considered white trash. My scholastic achievements equaled a D with the comment on my final report card, “not recommended for higher education”. Later in life, I faced marital problems including infidelity. Professionally, as an officer in the army and armed with my little high school education, I had to compete with college graduates and West Pointers. To stand out meant taking the hard high-risk jobs my pears avoided. Today, starting out the way I did would necessitate some help from a psychiatrist. But who has time for psychiatrists. Now here I am seventy years later and looking back on my achievements, I smile and think, boy did that teacher have it wrong.

Back to the subject of my Memoir. I think a lot of folks might benefit from reading it. Soldier: A Memoir stands out because of I wrote it. In a simple style and with stand-alone chapters, it reflects the challenges facing a large segment of the population. It surfaces difficulties that ordinary people can relate to. Reading it, one might think they are reading a novel and mistake it for fiction, without realizing it’s real, painful at times, humorous at times as it reveals a man’s life during 20 years of military service. It begins when I was eighteen and joined the Army and ends when I retired at thirty-eight. It describes my flaws, struggles, successes, failures, weaknesses, and insecurities as I face military service challenges. At the same time, it examines the relationship between two kids that got married too young. It describes their struggles and failures during Army life turmoil, many overseas’ moves, raising kids, loneliness from frequent and long separations, and the results.

What you get out of reading Soldier: A Memoir is up to you. But I think it shows the value of seeing a worthwhile commitment through to the end, despite all of life’s obstacles. I think it also points out that most people, no matter how poorly qualified they are, can obtain a measure of success with hard work and a positive attitude. Today I have wonderful wife who weathered the turmoil and troubles with me. We have two wonderful and successful children, a son, a daughter and two grandsons, offspring that ever parent prays for. If you read Soldier: A Memoir, be sure to read the epilog to see how far I was able to go before retiring and starting my writing career.

After I wrote Soldier: A Memoir I saw that I had to write two more books. Because of my unhappiness with my behavior and response to some of the hurt I faced; I wrote Something Beyond Love, a historical fiction based on my memoirs. It is published on Amazon and reflects the way I wished I had responded to the events I encountered in my marriage. I am almost finished with my last book, also fiction, which is based on my memoirs and imagines what my life might have been like if I had not remained committed to my marriage. When it is published my writing career is over. I end this with a quote from General MacArthur’s farewell to West Point, “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away,”