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Enjoy excerpts and prizes.
My grandmother would iron the flag my grandfather always displayed on sunny days. You could say my family was pro-military. My two sons are in the Army while my daughter-in-law serves in the Air Force. Two of my uncles fought in World War II. My third uncle was a career Air Force man. My stepfather's service time was in Italy. As for me, Army Reserves and more recently retired from the Civil Air Patrol as captain. With all that in consideration, my grandfather's military story is the best.
Cecil was a tall, strapping Indiana farm boy. He could throw hay bales up onto a rolling wagon bed and wrestle a heifer to the ground. The recruiter’s eyes must have lit up when he saw Cecil in line to volunteer for the great war. It didn’t matter that he’d never been more than twenty miles from his home. It didn’t matter that he was fifteen years old either. My grandfather did say he was seventeen. Birth certificates were not common at that time.
Before he knew it, he was training for his service overseas. Like most men of his generation, he never talked about his time overseas, but he did treasure a faded picture of a tall slender man outfitted in the dough boy uniform complete with steel helmet. His cocky smile demonstrated the photo was taken before he left the States.
As a young man of fifteen, he knew something needed to be fixed in the world. He unselfishly volunteered to be one of the many who sacrificed for the good of all. Part of the reason, he never spoke of his war experiences was that he believed it was something you did, rather like providing for your family.
This weekend we salute all those patriotic individuals who serve because freedom isn’t free. Each author in the blog has donated to the Wounded Warrior fund to help our recovering soldiers. Thanks for visiting. My excerpt is about a wounded warrior who finds himself back home and trying to piece his shatter life back together. Often while soldiers are overseas serving, their lives back home sometimes disintegrates.
Cecil was a tall, strapping Indiana farm boy. He could throw hay bales up onto a rolling wagon bed and wrestle a heifer to the ground. The recruiter’s eyes must have lit up when he saw Cecil in line to volunteer for the great war. It didn’t matter that he’d never been more than twenty miles from his home. It didn’t matter that he was fifteen years old either. My grandfather did say he was seventeen. Birth certificates were not common at that time.
Before he knew it, he was training for his service overseas. Like most men of his generation, he never talked about his time overseas, but he did treasure a faded picture of a tall slender man outfitted in the dough boy uniform complete with steel helmet. His cocky smile demonstrated the photo was taken before he left the States.
As a young man of fifteen, he knew something needed to be fixed in the world. He unselfishly volunteered to be one of the many who sacrificed for the good of all. Part of the reason, he never spoke of his war experiences was that he believed it was something you did, rather like providing for your family.
This weekend we salute all those patriotic individuals who serve because freedom isn’t free. Each author in the blog has donated to the Wounded Warrior fund to help our recovering soldiers. Thanks for visiting. My excerpt is about a wounded warrior who finds himself back home and trying to piece his shatter life back together. Often while soldiers are overseas serving, their lives back home sometimes disintegrates.
Each participating site has its own prizes. Here are mine. Comment to win. Winners are on announced on my FB page. www.facebook.com/AuthorMorganKWyatt
EXCERPT from The Inheritance. Read more on this site, under Tuesday Tales about how an unexpected inheritance draws to battered people together.
He could have called his uncle anytime during his enlistment, but he didn’t. Pride kept him from making the call. If he contacted Roy, then he’d asked about how he was doing in the Army.
The Army itself wasn’t too bad. The strict discipline, the routine, even knowing what to expect on most days, gave him a feeling of stability and belonging. It gave him a purpose when Angelique left him, taking his enlistment bonus with her. Roy warned him that the dark-eyed beauty bore him no love. His initial response was the man had no clue what love was since he was a lonely, bitter old man that no woman chose to love.
Wincing, he remembered the shock on his uncle’s face. He could have hit him with a two by four and not done as much damage. Roy managed to say, “You’re wrong,” before turning away.
At the time, he thought he meant he was wrong for marrying Angelique. Yeah, Levi would admit now that his uncle was right. A letter from an anonymous friend tipped him off. Angelique ran through his pay as if water while he awaited orders in a desert hellhole. That part wasn’t unexpected. Besides, he wanted to take care of his wife. He liked the idea of someone waiting for him to return. He’d idealized the woman giving her traits she did not possess.
As the only civilian in the recruitment office, Angelique had access to enlistee information. Roy insisted she knew who got the better enlistment bonus. Levi’s hefty bonus for enrolling in explosive ordinance job specification could have inspired her sudden love for a man five years her junior. The fact she took off with another man using his enlistment bonus only confirmed Roy’s theory.
He could have called his uncle anytime during his enlistment, but he didn’t. Pride kept him from making the call. If he contacted Roy, then he’d asked about how he was doing in the Army.
The Army itself wasn’t too bad. The strict discipline, the routine, even knowing what to expect on most days, gave him a feeling of stability and belonging. It gave him a purpose when Angelique left him, taking his enlistment bonus with her. Roy warned him that the dark-eyed beauty bore him no love. His initial response was the man had no clue what love was since he was a lonely, bitter old man that no woman chose to love.
Wincing, he remembered the shock on his uncle’s face. He could have hit him with a two by four and not done as much damage. Roy managed to say, “You’re wrong,” before turning away.
At the time, he thought he meant he was wrong for marrying Angelique. Yeah, Levi would admit now that his uncle was right. A letter from an anonymous friend tipped him off. Angelique ran through his pay as if water while he awaited orders in a desert hellhole. That part wasn’t unexpected. Besides, he wanted to take care of his wife. He liked the idea of someone waiting for him to return. He’d idealized the woman giving her traits she did not possess.
As the only civilian in the recruitment office, Angelique had access to enlistee information. Roy insisted she knew who got the better enlistment bonus. Levi’s hefty bonus for enrolling in explosive ordinance job specification could have inspired her sudden love for a man five years her junior. The fact she took off with another man using his enlistment bonus only confirmed Roy’s theory.
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