ALWAYS READY, ALWAYS THERE
During my freshman year of college at Chapel Hill, I was reluctantly
doing laundry late one night when a prototypical ROTC army cadet
walked in to toss his huge pile of dirty clothes into the laundry.
Given how the guy had apparently had a long day and was out of clean
clothes to wear, the cadet was still wearing his immaculate army
uniform for which all aspiring army officers in college are required
to wear. As if a magical unicorn or Jesus himself had just walked in
the room, all the other students who were doing laundry immediately
paused what they were doing to take stock of the different looking man
who was trying to work the washing machine. As the cadet went about
his business and left to go back to his room, I couldn’t help but
smile as the realization hit me that I definitely was not in
Fayetteville anymore.
Fort Bragg is the largest military
installation in the United States, holding approximately 53,700 troops
and covering a staggering 163,000 acres of land. It is without
question the center of the army for our nation and is home to some of
the most formidable armed units on this side of the western
hemisphere. The city of Fayetteville is literally located
right
outside of Fort Bragg, and the pair shares a unique bond that is both
strange and mutually beneficial. Given the immense population of Fort
Bragg, Fayetteville provides the soldiers with an alternative to
living on base and offers an escape from their all-consuming life of
service. Additionally, it is incredibly rare for a military
installation the size of Fort Bragg to be located so close to a city
as big as Fayetteville. On the other hand, Fayetteville is completely
dependent on the economic benefits that Fort Bragg brings and could
not survive in its current condition without the presence of the
military. Although the two are complete opposites from a cultural
perspective, the fates of Fayetteville and our nations armed forces
are forever intertwined.
Growing up as an army brat in
Fayetteville, seeing men and women in uniform on a daily basis was
simply a part of everyday life for me. All of my neighbors had
connections to the military, and when I was in elementary school I
used to wear my father’s over-sized army uniform on military
appreciation day. Regardless of what store or restaurant you went to,
it seemed like there would always be a person in a desert camouflage
uniform there. When I moved into Chapel Hill for college, it had never
occurred to me that this connection to our nation’s military was not
experienced by everyone. After seeing the reaction of the students in
the laundry room, I realized that oftentimes the sacrifices of those
who serve to protect our freedom can oftentimes go unnoticed or
unheard. Although the expression may be overused, it genuinely is true
that freedom certainly isn’t free. When you get a chance, take a
moment to think about the brave men and women who live there lives for
the purpose of always being ready and always being present when
needed.
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