Wilton,

Good afternoon. My situation was less than ideal when my post was selected. In fact, most of my class had a hard time. I chose a myriad of different areas and posts to be stationed, including volunteering for Korea and Bragg. For my bottom two choices, I selected Drum and Sill.

My branch manager of the time posted me at Fort Sill (Where I attended BOLC) as a Field Artillery officer. So, I got my absolute bottom choice of where to be stationed. I won’t lie, I absolutely hated Fort Sill. Those who are stationed there often refer to Fort Sill as “the black hole of broken dreams” and “where Soldiers go to commit career suicide.”

However, I will say that, even though my time in Oklahoma was dismal, at best, I would not trade my time to protect and empower my Soldiers for anything else in the world. In that moment, I was exactly where I needed to be to impact their lives.

Regardless of where I go, I challenge you to remember that the Soldiers give YOU a job… not the other way around. Listen to them, challenge them to always tell EVERYONE the honest truth (regardless of rank or situation), and take moments to get right down and dirty with them (scrubbing chains, helping with layouts, and anywhere else you can help them). Soldiers appreciate two things more than anything else: Their time… and yours.

Thanks for letting me rant.

-Josh
Field Artillery