Hiker, and co-founder of American Spartan Inc, Captain Tommy Muir, continues to keep us updated on the day-to-day of the 425+ mile Spartan Hike, via emails spent from his phone.
"This morning we arose to find it surprisingly warmer than we had become accustomed to. We carried out our morning activities and drove to our starting point for a modest 17.3 miles. With each step south we take, our message and cause spreads further and we are subsequently met with more and more support. Today provided great examples of that, with countless waves, salutes to our flag we carry, horn honks and several people waiting on the side of the road to ask questions, offer support and give well received donations.
In between the welcomed encounters of support, we talk to one another and also get plenty of time for personal reflection. Each and every one of us has multiple combat deployments under our belts and consequently carry with us the memories of those who came home not as they left or those who didn't come home at all, our Nation's true heroes.
For me, the first combat wounded veteran I had the privilige of meeting came two months before I became a platoon commander in the operating forces. It was November of 2005, I was a student at infantry officer course and my younger brother was 9,000 miles away in Fallujah, Iraq on his first deployment with 2/7. As I was the older brother, I was always the first to do pretty much everything, except step up to defend the country. Jeffrey did that and the proudest day of my life was watching him graduate recruit training at MCRD San Diego on the Corps' Birthday in 2004. As we were raised to back each other in a fight, I left for OCS in January of '05 in his footsteps for the first time in my life. While his squad was on a routine foot patrol, they encountered a suspected IED. Due to movies, most people think, "okay, set up security and call in EOD". In the third world, they don't have trash day, they simply use something until it no longer serves it's intended purpose then they discard it wherever. So the battlefield is littered with endless possible IEDs and it's essential that the unit on the ground determine that it is positively an IED prior to calling EOD, as they are heavily burdened.
Acting as I believe any good leader should, Jeffrey's squad leader Corporal Z had his men set security and he approached closer to make the determination, never asking his men to do something he wouldn't himself. It turned out to be a real IED and the detenation nearly killed him. He later confessed to Jeffrey that if one of his Marines hadn't been screaming in his face during the duration of his medevac, that he probably would have died as the pain was unbearable and he just wanted to slip off to sleep.
Prior to departing for a 20 day field training exercise at IOC, I got a call from Jeffrey telling me about what happened to Z. Before he could ask, I told him that as soon as he got to Bethesda I'd be there visiting him. Z got to Bethesda from Germany two or three days before I got out of the field on a Friday. We had our Marine Corps Birthday Ball Saturday night in Richmond, VA so I knew I wasn't going to be able to get up to see him until Sunday. I woke up early Sunday morning, said goodbye to the girl I was seeing who drove up for the ball from NC, got in my car and headed north to see the guy who had been consuming every thought that wasn't related to work the previous three weeks.
As long as I live, I will never forget walking into that hospital room. Z had no idea I was coming to visit but due to my brother and my similar appearance, he instantly recognized me. As I knew he had already endured nearly a dozen surgeries, mainly skin graphs and others to put him back together, his next move left a lasting impression. With iridescent eyes, he rose in his bed and extended his gauze covered hand, he lost each pinkie finger, to me. He and I spent the next few hours talking about sports, movies and the leadership potential and combat ability he saw in my
brother.
As the majority of his body was covered in gauze and he was being held together by staples and stiches from the many surgeries he had already had and he knew there were many more lingering in the near future, he never once displayed a sign that he wasn't planning on making a full recovery. His grit and positive attitude were more than impressive, showing me just how strong and capable the young men are who were fighting this current war.
When it came time for him to get some much needed rest, we exchanged goodbyes and I told him I'd see him later. What I didn't tell him was thank you for personifying what I should expect of a squad leader in my platoon, thank you for taking care of and developing my brother and most of all, thank you for your service and your selfless sacrifice."
Tommy Muir
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