With all it’s negatives and downsides, I still wouldn’t trade being a military brat for anything in the world. I also will never forget my Dad’s selfless service in far away places defending our country in the USAF Security Service.

I was really proud and overjoyed at the job the Navy Seals did in freeing Captain Richard Phillips from the Somalian pirates. They did an incredible job. God bless our men and women serving in the Armed Forces.

USAFSS Dad

It’s hard to imagine a military BRAT’S childhood. Moving from base to base around the world, they are at home everywhere – and nowhere. There are 1.2 million children being raised in the military today. An estimated 15 million Americans are former BRATS. They include actors Jessica Alba and Robert Duvall, Senator John McCain, and basketball star Shaquille O’Neal.

BRATS is the first cinematic glimpse into a global subculture whose journey to adulthood is a high-octane mixture of incredible excitement and enormous pain. Make no mistake – BRATS is not about the U.S. military – it’s about their children, who grow up in a paradox that is idealistic and authoritarian, privileged and perilous, supportive and stifling – all at the same time. Their passports say “United States,” but they’re really citizens of the world.

Singer/songwriter and Air Force brat Kris Kristofferson leads us through the heart of their experiences, sharing intimate memories with fellow BRATS, including General Norman Schwarzkopf and author Mary Edwards Wertsch, whose ground-breaking book, Military Brats: Legacies of Childhood Inside the Fortress, was one of the seminal inspirations for this film. Their stories reveal the peculiar landscape of their childhood, the culture that binds them together, and the power it exerts over their adult lives.

A seven-year work of passion by independent filmmaker Donna Musil, BRATS features rare archival footage, home movies and private photographs from post-war Japan, Germany, and Vietnam.

PFC Daniel A. Hendrix

Today was the last day of our visit to see Daniel graduate. He graduated from 3^rd Battalion, 34^th Infantry, Bravo Company. Tomorrow (Sunday), he jumps in a bus and heads for Fort Lee, VA for his Quartermaster school for 10 weeks. We had a great two days here with him. We bowled, shopped, ate, and generally cut-up the whole time. Daniel always brought a “battle-buddy” along who was alone and without family. I’ve included some pictures on my flickr account of the graduation. You can look at them here. We were so busy, I forget to get any pictures of him. This picture to the left is taking at 8pm at night at his barracks and it’s our final moments with him before we leave. He looks very serious in the picture but it’s right before saying goodbye and he’s already had some emotional and tearful time with Mom saying goodbye. It was hard leaving him.

US Army BCT Family Day

We got to finally see PFC (Private First Class) Daniel today. He looked incredible in uniform. Today was Family Day where we watched him form up with his company. They released him at noon and we had him back at 1945 hours (7:45pm for you civilians). We went bowling and shopping but the main thing Daniel wanted to do was eat REAL food. We did Taco Bell, snacks, and finally Outback Steakhouse where he ordered the 20 ounce steak. Tomorrow is the actual graduation and we get to spend the day with him again until 1945 hours again. It’s been a full day and I’m exhausted. You can see some pictures here.

Timothy, Dad, and Mom

Well, we finally arrived in Columbia, SC at about 9pm. It’s 2am (can’t sleep) and thought I’d update the blog. Normally, we’d have made much better time but we took a detour. We wanted to go see Fall Creek Falls where my Mom and Dad had their honeymoon. Timothy has been really wanted some good photos with long exposures of waterfalls. We didn’t realize, however, how far off of I-40 Fall Creek Falls was. We changed our mind but on the way back up to I-40, we saw a sign for Burgess Falls and gave it a try. It was WONDERFUL. It had 3 sets of falls and Timothy had a blast. I think I had more fun watching him have so much fun. He took some awesome pictures. You can see them HERE. Although it was only a 3/4 mile trip to the falls, the last part of extremely steep and very rocky for a fat guy with a bad knee but I did it. Just getting this picture with Timothy and Jo Ann with the falls behind us was worth it. I can feel my knee screaming at me now as I type from the experience but it was still worth it. Thursday (now today) is Family Day at Fort Jackson and we’ll get to spend some of the day with PFC Daniel Hendrix!

Thomas and Anna

The wedding day has come and gone. Thomas and Anna are now married and enjoying some time off together here in Tennessee. Thomas is stationed in Fort Myer, Virginia in The Old Guard as a Combat Medic. The wedding went wonderfully. We held it at Fairview Community Church in Fairview, TN. I had the honor of officiating. We actually filled the church and had to bring up more chairs. It really was nice to see everyone come. We had the reception at the bride’s mother’s home in Franklin. The bride and groom relaxed and stuffed cake in each other’s mouth and then opened the presents and cards. It was a full day.

The pictures from the wedding can be seen here.