Ah, Marine Corps Boot Camp, Parris Island, summer 1960. Hot and lots of sand fleas which you were not allowed to swat. Just stand in formation and let them bite you.

Five of us enlisted on the buddy plan. After a week, one of us got into a little trouble. A drill instructor (DI) called him an “SOB,” and being an old country boy from Tennessee, my buddy assumed the DI was insulting his mother. One sucker punch later, the DI was lying on the deck, and the military police had hauled him off for two weeks in the “Motivation Platoon” which taught you not to do things like hit a DI. I saw him a few months later, and he didn’t want to talk about it. I got the impression that he got “motivated.” One can only imagine what went on in those two weeks.

Another incident involved another recruit I did not know. They would march us over to the Post Exchange (PX) once a week to buy essentials, like shaving gear, toothpaste, etc. This guy bought a nickel candy bar out of a machine and was caught. He spent five days in the brig. After he got out, he said it wasn’t nearly as bad as Boot Camp.

Another recruit received a box of candy from home and was made to stand in the middle of the barracks and eat the whole box. He threw up and had to clean up his own mess. I immediately wrote home and told my mother I appreciated her letters but to please not send me anything to eat, especially candy!

As for me, I did what my recruiting officer told me back in Tennessee – keep my nose clean, do as I was told, and keep my mouth shut. I actually enjoyed Boot Camp, especially the rifle range. Those memories will be with me forever.