Reflections

I started writing for the U.S. Army as a civilian when I was 21. I worked alongside a veteran editor, a couple of National Guard soldiers, and a few officers. They all warned me against doing two things: joining the military and falling in…

Last week, The War Horse revealed how the Department of Veterans Affairs’ inspector general estimated that VA has failed to inform up to 87,000 Vietnam War veterans and their survivors that they may now qualify for retroactive…

Editor’s Note: This story was published in partnership with San Quentin News and was written during a writing seminar for incarcerated veterans in April hosted by The War Horse at California’s San Quentin Rehabilitation Center. Tens of…

I heard a shout, and two men barreled into my office like lions pouncing on a zebra, my sergeant hard on their heels. The big one was six feet-plus, a beefy nightclub bouncer in the gray-green uniform of a West German police officer. His…

Active-duty service members and veterans thinking of harming themselves can get free crisis care. Contact the Military Crisis Line at 988, then press 1, or access online chat by texting 838255. The Sergeant was living in a car when I met…

In Vietnam—as in most wars with American involvement—singers, comedians, and bands often traveled to war zones to entertain the troops. These included performers from The Bob Hope Show, the multitalented Danny Kaye, and broadcaster and…

In the fall of 2000, I received a phone call from an unrecognized number with an unfamiliar area code and decided to answer.“Is this Tigerman?” asked a voice on the line. I thought for a second before answering. “Is this LT?” He knew he’d…

Andrew waited long enough to be born a North Carolinian. After weeks in an Extended Stay America in Jacksonville, North Carolina, our family finally got a move-in date for our tiny base house—and the belongings we’d long been parted from…

The C-130 bounced like a rollercoaster at a cheap traveling circus. I sat on the cargo netting bench seats surrounded by first-time jumpers and pretended to sleep.All I could think about—other than that one of these bastards was going to…

Jan. 23, 1968, was an exciting day for me. I had no idea just how exciting it would turn out to be.I’d recently returned from three weeks of leave in the US and was finishing up an 18-month tour in the Philippines that included several…