Oh won't you please take me home....?

As I approach 50, I often reflect on the inflection points of my life.  One of those huge inflection points was my assignment to the Second Infantry Division, 2/2 Aviation Regiment, Camp Stanley, Korea.  After some jostling around, I  met my goal of becoming a UH-60 platoon leader in A Company.

Camp Stanley was home to the Aviation Brigade (helicopters) and DIVARTY (Division Artillery, (Howitzers, big, big guns!)).

At the main gate of Camp Stanley was a sign that said "Welcome to Camp Stanley, Home of Guns and Rotors".  That was kind of a take off on the group "Guns and Roses" who were very popular with the soldiers at the time.

Their song, Paradise City was extremely popular.  Especially the chorus that sang "Take, take me home!  Oh won't you please take me home?!"  An assignment in Korea, up close to the DMZ, was considered a tough assignment.  You were on standby all the time, the North Koreans could and might attack at any time.  We were on constant alert and were suspended there in what seemed to be another world, for 365 days.

Looking back on it, with regard to our soldiers, who have been back and forth to Iraq and Afghanistan many, many times, where there are real bombs, real bullets and real death all the time; the 2ID in Korea was a much easier assignment.  But at that time, we didn't have anything of that magnitude to compare our assignment too.

So the song's chorus of "Take me home!!" still resonates with me.

Somedays you think you are going through the hardest part of your life, when actually, upon reflection, it might just be the very best part of your life.

I made it home, but there were others like CW3 Jerry Haney who didn't.  Jerry died in a fiery helicopter crash after he and his crew hit wires close to the Han River.  Jerry had ten days left on his 365 day tour.  He didn't have to take that mission, but he did.  The Korean farmers who witnessed the crash, didn't have to rush into the burning crash to pull out two of Jerry's crew, but they did.  Maybe they didn't know Jerry was still in there.

Flying is dangerous work and let me tell you, I believe Jerry Haney was one of the best instructor pilots we had.  Sometimes your number is just up.  Sometimes you volunteer for just a little bit more than you bargain for.

I miss you Jerry!

When I hear "Paradise City" played now, the first thing I remember is that I did make it home.  The rest is a jumbled memory of flying, of being at the controls of that very powerful UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter under Night Vision Goggles along the DMZ.

And the decisions I made there that will forever echo in the rest of my life.

A few years later, I was assigned again to Korea.  This time I got a picture of me in my favorite office.