Hey Everyone,
So Devin is in the Army and going Airborne on top of that! WOW! I’m very impressed. Becoming an American Commando and learning to be a hunter from the sky. I would guess that if you can get thru the idea of jumping out of perfectly good airplanes everything else is (relatively) easier.
Devin, Good job son. Give it your all, all the time. Hold back nothing. Listen and learn during the “on the ground” training, it will save you much grief when you start jumping, and move you ahead quicker. Know that you will make mistakes, everyone does; doing your best, though, will keep them small. And remember good men learn from their mistakes and become better through them. Good luck to you, we are all pulling for you; and know, above all, that you are loved!
John and Cindy,
Congratulations, you’ve raised a fine man. He has shown the courage and made a commitment very few can muster up. I know you are both very proud, that’s part of the payback for your work in raising him. His substance and mettle reflect well on you both.
Some Facts and Figures:
The first jump tower at Airborne school is 34 feet high. The saying goes: ”somebody smart figured out that if a person can jump from 34 feet, they could jump from 3400 feet.” The higher tower is considerably higher! The type of jump they do in Airborne is called a static line jump. That means there is a fixed ‘rope’ to the airplane that will open their chutes automatically, so no one has to worry about Devin forgetting to pull his ripcord.
A personal note:
My most ‘memorable’ boot camp punishment was: having to hold my “piece” at arms length out in front of me, parallel to the ground from a standing position. Can’t remember what I did wrong or even how long I was able to hold it. I do remember impressing some of my company members with my ability early on and I still remember the pain I was in when I was finally released. Funny what the mind selects to remember and what it doesn’t. And in case some of you youngsters are thinking piece means M16 – plastic gun, to the contrary, this was 8.7 lbs of ’03 Springfield we marched around with in those days. Pushups were pretty easy stuff after that.
That’s all I got for now.
Ken (Way coolest Aunt Cat’s husband)