Half days

Fort Lewis authorizes 10 consecutive half-day work schedules following redeployment. After that most of the unit will go on leave for a couple of weeks, if only to sit at the house. And there is nothing wrong with that. Every single one of the guys (and two gals) has earned the right to wake up at noon, play with the kids, and have a family dinner with some beer.

For now we are working the half days as we process paperwork, have medical appointments, and generally reintegrate into the garrison Army environment. Redeploying means switching from the patrol cap back to the beret, which is symbolic of the entire return from the field to garrison. The patrol cap - functional, common sense, imbued with purpose. The beret? Crying out for attention, unhelpful, inconvenient, and desperate to prove its worth in an indifferent and cruel world. That is the garrison Army.

I'll take my half days though. It is allowing me to plow through the "to do" list at home, which serves the mutually satisfying purpose of accomplishing tasks for my wife and letting me feel like a real husband. Everybody wins.