Commentary Search

  • If I’m deployed, how will Santa find me?

    When I was a kid, I’d often travel from North Carolina to Georgia to spend Christmas with my grandparents. Although I was eager to arrive so I could eat my weight in freshly baked oatmeal cookies, there was one concern that would inevitably fill me with dread: if I’m not at my official home of

  • Run for the thrills: 5 steps to get you on the road to enjoying running

    I can remember early on in my military career having delusions of grandeur – actually it dates back to shortly before taking my oath of enlistment. My recruiter told me to start exercising regularly to prepare for boot camp, since I’d be shipping out in a matter of weeks. I told him not to worry as

  • Finding help

    Last week I received devastating news. My wife and I were sitting on the couch, watching “The Voice” and perusing Facebook during commercial breaks, when I came across a status that shocked me to my core. A friend posted a status that our friend, Jeremy took his life. I couldn’t believe it. I had

  • Finding your place in the big picture

    Why are you here; why do you serve? Sometimes it’s easy to lose focus of the big picture and the reasons we serve. We have many ancillary requirements, or terms of employment, laid upon us: numerous CBTs, MICT checklists, processing orders for pay and completing travel vouchers in DTS, remaining

  • Welcome the new

    As we move into the New Year, how do you handle the past? Is the past something that is forgotten like the old year, or does it hang around and dominate your future?I have noticed recently that the topic for January is not only New Year’s resolutions, but the past in general. In listening to the

  • Life goes on, but not the same

    Four years ago Jan. 12, I received a phone call that completely changed my life. I woke up to news that my best friend Robby had been killed. For several hours I felt paralyzed before I broke down. I poured through all the photo albums I had looking at pictures of us from when we were kids hanging

  • Truly humbled: my transition from enlistee to Air Force officer

    Truly humbled; two words that come to mind when I think about the last three months and a journey that started almost two years ago.With the guidance and help from my wing and office leadership, I was nominated and selected as a Senior Airman to earn a commission through the Deserving Airman

  • Glitz and glam: What am I doing here?

    It was a night to remember for all the right reasons. At nine-thirty in the evening, a cool breeze brushed my face and a smirk began to form. In hindsight, I was glad I attended, though, my stomach still growled at the thought of the "grog bowl," contents of which still remain unknown. "That's one

  • Commentary: Peace amidst the storms

    What comes to your mind when you hear the word, "peace?" Is it a place at a quiet lake, a solitary place at a beach or somewhere in a beautiful garden? Do you picture yourself somewhere where it's quiet, safe and pleasant? Sometimes life throws us in all kinds of troubles, storms and challenging

  • What is resiliency?

    Resiliency: The ability to withstand, recover and/or grow in the face of stressors and changing demands. (Source - Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury)The objective of 2011 Wingman Day is to reinforce the Wingman concept as the foundation to building