Order of Man - Above and Beyond the Call of Duty with Medal of Honor Recipient, KYLE CARPENTER

00:00:00.000 What causes one man to jump on a grenade to save a fellow Marine when most of us would run the

00:00:05.180 other way? That's exactly what my guest today, Kyle Carpenter did when attacked by the Taliban 0.92

00:00:09.800 in Afghanistan in 2010. Through his actions, he was awarded the medal of honor as the youngest

00:00:15.420 living medal of honor recipient. Today, Kyle and I talk about the days leading up to his heroic

00:00:20.460 action. What exactly happened? His injuries sustained his road to recovery and his evolution

00:00:26.300 as a human being since that day. We also cover his new book, You Are Worth It,

00:00:31.600 Building a Life Worth Fighting For. And gentlemen, you are really, really going to enjoy this discussion.

00:00:36.520 You're a man of action. You live life to the fullest. Embrace your fears and boldly chart your

00:00:41.420 own path. When life knocks you down, you get back up one more time. Every time. You are not easily

00:00:47.400 deterred or defeated. Rugged, resilient, strong. This is your life. This is who you are. This is

00:00:54.720 who you will become. At the end of the day, and after all is said and done, you can call

00:00:59.620 yourself a man.

00:01:01.020 Hey guys, what's going on? My name is Ryan Mickler and I am the host and the founder of

00:01:05.200 this podcast and the movement that is Order of Man. That's my goal, if you don't already

00:01:09.740 know, to give you the best conversations, resources, guidance, direction, insight, tools,

00:01:15.360 whatever you may need to become a more capable father, husband, business owner, and community

00:01:19.900 leader. And that's what we're doing in this podcast. Of course, I've got a great one lined

00:01:23.180 up for you today with Kyle Carpenter, but we've had other amazing guests, Jocko Willink,

00:01:27.760 David Goggins, Dakota Meyer. As I say, every week, our lineup of men who have joined us is

00:01:32.960 absolutely, absolutely incredible. And it's a, it's a testament to the work that we're doing

00:01:37.900 here. So if you're new or you've been with us forever, I'm glad that you've decided to

00:01:41.840 band with us in some capacity. I don't want to waste a bunch of time today. I'm back in my

00:01:46.800 office after spending a couple of days in South Carolina with my friend, Bert Soren, and of

00:01:51.680 course, Kyle Carpenter. I had a couple of days of touring the Sorenx factory down there,

00:01:57.480 training, and then also podcasting with both of these individuals. And I'm really excited

00:02:03.260 to introduce you to my guest today. Before I do, I do want to give you a very, very quick

00:02:08.060 introduction. If you don't already know, or aren't familiar with Sorenx, this is a American

00:02:13.000 made company. Everything is sourced and made in America. And they, they build some absolutely

00:02:18.360 incredible exercise equipment that you will want to add to your tools. If you are interested

00:02:24.800 in getting strong, which I'm sure most of you are. So they've got their racks and they've

00:02:30.060 got their weights and bars. And I use their center mass bells quite a bit. Of course, they've

00:02:34.160 got kettlebells and all the traditional things that you would have, but they also have a lot

00:02:38.040 of very, uh, new ideas and insights and creative, uh, applications, creative tools, creative

00:02:45.520 equipment, I should say. So make sure you check it out. If you're interested in building out

00:02:49.840 your gym, Sorenx is a great place to start head to sorenx.com that's S O R I N E X.com and

00:02:57.120 check out what they have to offer. All right, guys, let me get into the introduction of my guest

00:03:01.640 today. His name is Kyle Carpenter. And as I said earlier, he's the youngest living medal of

00:03:06.540 honor recipient, uh, Kyle joined the Marine Corps at age 19 and not long after was deployed

00:03:11.660 with the first Marine division to Afghanistan, where he ultimately ended up throwing himself

00:03:16.800 on a grenade to save a fellow Marine. Uh, this guy is one of the most humble people that I

00:03:22.640 know, and I'm inspired by his experience, his life, and of course, who he is as a human

00:03:28.000 being. Uh, I thought in introducing him today, it would be very fitting to actually just go

00:03:32.700 ahead and read you his medal of honor citation. So I'll do that briefly. And then we'll

00:03:36.300 get into our discussion for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above

00:03:43.060 and beyond the call of duty while serving as an automatic rifleman with company F second

00:03:47.760 battalion, ninth Marines, regimental combat team, one first Marine division, one Marine

00:03:52.800 expeditionary force in Hemlin province, Afghanistan, in support of operation enduring freedom on 21,

00:03:59.660 November, 2010, Lance Corporal Carpenter was a member of a platoon size coalition force comprised

00:04:05.580 of two reinforced Marine rifle squads partnered with an Afghan national army squad. The platoon

00:04:11.280 had established patrol base Dakota two days earlier in a small village in the Marjav district in order

00:04:16.660 to disrupt enemy activity and provide security for the local Afghan population. Lance Corporal Carpenter

00:04:22.480 and a fellow Marine were manning a rooftop security position on the perimeter of patrol base Dakota when

00:04:27.640 the enemy initiated a daylight attack with hand grenades, one of which landed inside of their sandbag

00:04:32.880 position. Without hesitation and with complete disregard for his own safety, Lance Corporal

00:04:38.180 Carpenter moved towards the grenade in attempt to shield his fellow Marine from the deadly blast.

00:04:42.880 When the grenade detonated, his body absorbed the brunt of the blast, severely wounding him,

00:04:48.040 but saving the life of his fellow Marine. By his undaunted courage, bold fighting spirit,

00:04:53.080 and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of almost certain death, Lance Corporal Carpenter reflected

00:04:58.300 great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United

00:05:03.060 States Naval Service. Kyle, what's up brother? Ryan, so happy to be here, man. I am too. It's

00:05:10.000 pretty cool to be able to sit down with you just knowing a little bit about your story and get to

00:05:14.200 know you over the past. Well, we met at Summer Strong, so what's that? Like four months or so

00:05:18.440 ago, roughly? Yeah. So how's things been, man? You're on quite a journey with the new book launch.

00:05:24.660 When does the book come out? October 15th. I should have known that before we started.

00:05:28.080 No worries, man. No worries. So it's coming up. You're right. It's been a journey. And even just

00:05:35.920 the past few weeks, it could be looked at as a short-term journey, finally finishing it, getting

00:05:41.300 ready for all the media stuff and the launch. But really, the journey started years ago, two years

00:05:49.020 ago writing. And then before that, a lot of what I talk about in the book and the lessons that I try

00:05:55.760 to convey, I spent many, many years thinking about how I could write a book that transcended all

00:06:04.860 boundaries. That wasn't just a book that someone that has been in the military or been in combat

00:06:11.000 can relate to. I wanted, you know, to write something that anyone and everyone could not

00:06:16.220 only pick up and read, but understand and take lessons from. So it is surreal that I finished it

00:06:25.620 and it's complete. And it turned out, you know, more amazing than I could have ever hoped for. So I'm

00:06:31.440 very thankful that I was able to do this and write this book. Could you imagine you being in this

00:06:37.680 situation even five, six, seven years ago? I mean, think about how far you've come and where you're

00:06:44.280 at right now. I mean, just to see, obviously we're going to get into your story and your life, but

00:06:48.860 to see where you came from to where you are now, I mean, it's pretty inspiring. So I can't imagine

00:06:54.280 somebody won't be inspired by what you share in your story and your words.

00:06:57.840 Well, thank you. And, uh, yeah, even, you know, even though I went through it and I experienced

00:07:08.400 all of the things I have good and bad in the hospital and out, uh, even though it's my journey,

00:07:16.740 it's still almost seems unreal and very surreal at times, but, you know, I'm thankful to still be here

00:07:24.140 and still have the opportunity to kind of keep figuring out life and living life, uh, one day

00:07:30.800 at a time. Yeah. Yeah. Well, let's, I mean, let's back up because I mean, you've obviously had some

00:07:37.020 very unique things happen to you in your life. I commend you for what you've made of them. Cause

00:07:42.320 I think there's a lot of opportunity for, uh, somebody potentially in your situation to self

00:07:46.580 destruct in a lot of ways and go down a path that maybe doesn't serve them or anybody else. Well,

00:07:51.000 but you haven't taken that path. Um, you, you joined the Marines. Were you in high school when

00:07:56.500 you joined? Uh, I was not shortly after high school. I graduated high school in 2008. Uh,

00:08:02.860 went to bootcamp March of 2009. Okay. Yeah. Cause I thought I had seen somewhere. It was like a

00:08:08.680 delayed entry program or something like that. And so I was like, well, maybe he joined when he was

00:08:12.280 high school, finished up high school and then, and then went into bootcamp. Yeah. Uh, the delayed

00:08:17.500 entry program for a little while, but, uh, depending on when you join and the need for,

00:08:23.740 uh, more troops and bodies, uh, I was just thankful that I didn't have to sit around in

00:08:30.320 the debt program for a year. So what a lot of people I have to do. Is that right? Yeah. Yeah.

00:08:35.520 So, so it was fairly quick then for you. Yeah. Yeah. Just a few months. And, uh, that's good. Cause

00:08:41.260 I was, I was a little impatient. What made you decide to, uh, join the military? Um,

00:08:47.500 I just wanted to do something

00:08:51.920 bigger than myself or any one individual. And,

00:08:58.260 you know, maybe not my only, but my biggest fears in life, uh, is regret and unfilled potential.

00:09:11.260 And so I didn't want to wake up one day and not only have missed the opportunity to join

00:09:18.940 and to serve, but miss the opportunity to, um, feel deep down inside that I committed myself,

00:09:31.920 my body and my life, uh, to a greater purpose and to other people. Yeah. No, that makes sense.

00:09:39.260 Did you have family that was in the military? Like where did that idea even spur from? Cause

00:09:43.080 I mean, you could have went a bunch of different ways, right? And still maybe fulfilled what you're

00:09:46.340 talking about. Yeah. Uh, so my mom's dad was in the Navy, but he died unfortunately when I was very

00:09:52.960 young. So, you know, um, kind of take him out of the picture, I guess. And no one else in my family

00:10:01.600 uh, has ever served or as a veteran. And so, um,

00:10:07.380 yeah, you know, I, I, uh, could have gone many different routes, but,

00:10:14.360 and I think one of the things that at the heart of why I joined besides the reasons that I told you

00:10:21.220 is, uh, I've always been into sports challenging myself, uh, whether it is sitting in the recliner

00:10:29.980 when I was really young, trying to master blowing bubbles with gum with my dad or, you know,

00:10:36.040 striving for that next touchdown or putting that next big 45 pound plate on the weight bar.

00:10:42.480 So I've always loved challenge and, uh, and gladly accepted challenge, but I had never been pushed

00:10:50.260 to the point of physically and mentally wanting to quit. Yeah.

00:10:58.040 I had never, I had never been pushed so hard that I really had to, you know, dig and look down deep

00:11:08.580 inside me and I wanted something to do that. And I knew that was not only the military, uh, but after

00:11:16.540 research, talking to people and, you know, I went to multiple different branches and recruiters,

00:11:23.340 but, you know, after I got that full picture, I knew that the Marine Corps was the path that was

00:11:31.920 meant for me. And I knew that the Marine Corps, uh, would give me what I was searching for.

00:11:38.420 Yeah. Did you feel like you got that in bootcamp and more probably

00:11:42.120 and a lot more, was that a wake up call for you? Like, what did I do? Or were you into it?

00:11:49.780 Uh, both. I mean, you know, when, so you think it starts at bootcamp and then you get about a

00:11:58.720 mile outside of the gate, you're on this bus with all of the other nasty recruits going to Paris

00:12:04.400 Island and you're about a mile outside the gate and the bus driver who, um, has done it many times,

00:12:11.620 I'm sure. Uh, he tells you to put your head down in between your legs. You're thinking like, okay,

00:12:19.540 you know, like what, what's going on here? And then you learn that it is because if you ever go

00:12:25.760 crazy or try to run away and escape from Paris Island, you won't know or be familiar with the one

00:12:33.380 little windy road. Is that true? And the only way in and off of, uh, Paris Island through the swamps

00:12:39.940 and, uh, all of the sand fleas and sand nets. So. Is that true? Yeah, yeah, that's true. So, uh,

00:12:45.900 head down in between my legs. I kind of had that thought of what did I get myself into before I even,

00:12:52.400 before I even had the van door ripped open by one of the scariest human beings I've ever seen.

00:12:59.100 Uh, but you know, you, you get out and even though you're thinking, what have I done?

00:13:06.120 You're terrified. No one's ever screamed at you like that. Yeah. You know, you get out and you stand

00:13:11.420 on those famous yellow footprints. And even though everyone has different haircuts, you don't have 0.56

00:13:17.840 your uniforms yet. I mean, you are fresh off the bus, but you still get in that forced, but for the

00:13:25.700 first time in your life, that structured military formation and, you know, going into bootcamp,

00:13:32.840 um, I mean, I knew I wasn't going to quit. Um, you know, but I tried to, you know, just get in the

00:13:41.140 mindset of, okay, when I do get pushed to that limit, you know, whether physical, mental, or emotional,

00:13:48.440 you know, kind of just whatever comes my way, you know, not only will I not quit, but how do I want

00:13:58.580 to handle myself? And you were thinking about that even before the, before the fact is what you're

00:14:04.700 saying. Yes. Cause you know, you, you hear the horror stories and the beautiful lessons that come

00:14:11.220 from Marine Corps bootcamp. Um, so I knew those moments were inevitable. So I, and I knew I didn't

00:14:17.960 know what I was getting into and I couldn't adequately prepare, expect, or know most of the

00:14:25.520 stuff that I was going to be exposed to, but I knew it was going to be hard. I knew it was going to be

00:14:30.540 very challenging mentally or physically. And so I just got in the mindset of, you know, not only am I not

00:14:37.320 in a quit, but what am I going to learn about myself? And I was curious how far and hard I could

00:14:46.000 push myself. Yeah. Did you learn things about yourself that you didn't previously know? I mean,

00:14:50.480 you said you were an athlete. I went to basic training when I was 18 years old, similar situation.

00:14:56.340 You know, I, I played sports. I had coaches that pushed me and I did the thing. Um, I saw a bunch of

00:15:02.540 guys who had never experienced any of that really struggle. I thrived in basic training because I

00:15:07.740 had that experience, but I did learn things about myself that I didn't know were there. Did you feel

00:15:12.960 that same way? Um, I learned, well, you know, I learned what I set out to do very, or, or why I joined

00:15:30.660 in the first place. I learned and experienced and felt what it was like for, you know, really the first

00:15:40.220 time besides my family and, and, and very intimate things like that. But for the first time I really

00:15:48.540 learned and realized and felt what it was like to be a part of a group of people and an organization

00:15:57.040 that is greater than any one individual. And not only that, you know, I learned what it felt

00:16:07.460 like deep down inside to value the person to the right and left of you as much as yourself

00:16:18.880 and as much as your own life. And, you know, maybe, uh, you know, at that point, uh, you're very

00:16:29.000 motivated and hyped up on Marine Corps and bootcamp and all these things. Uh, so, you know, maybe

00:16:34.940 you're not at the point just 13 weeks into it that it's automatic, Hey, I'm going to lay down my life

00:16:41.540 for someone or I'd gladly do that because none of us really ever know. But to be taught those lessons

00:16:48.900 about, you know, former Marines, you know, heroic Marines that were told that, you know, Hey, if

00:16:56.180 you make it to this beach during world war two, you'll probably still only have about 20 seconds to

00:17:03.280 live, you know, at 18, 19, 20 years old, crazy, they still charged ahead. Yeah. The Marines that,

00:17:10.720 you know, froze to death at the chosen reservoir in Korea, you know, those, those Marines that 1.00

00:17:17.360 fought so heroically and, and put others above themselves in the fields of Vietnam that most

00:17:24.480 people have never heard of, can't pronounce, don't know where it is on a map. And so, you know,

00:17:30.900 to hear all of those things, just, even though it was the beginning steps, it, it laid the foundation

00:17:37.420 for not only what I learned about the Marine Corps and what it was to be a Marine, but, you know,

00:17:45.660 what it truly means to serve and do something bigger than yourself.

00:17:49.980 Hmm. To what degree do you relate with, or even identify with some of the heroes that you're

00:17:58.760 talking about? Cause I know what I think. I think you're, I think you're a hero, but I don't know if

00:18:07.300 you think that I'm curious. Maybe you do, maybe you don't. Maybe there's somewhere on the, the,

00:18:11.900 the range of heroism that you feel like you're on. I don't know.

00:18:17.320 Well, I appreciate that, Ryan.

00:18:27.400 Uh, I would say

00:18:29.920 I'm very proud of what I did and the Marine that I was when I was still wearing that uniform and,

00:18:43.700 you know, on that deployment in Afghanistan. But, you know, if you look at what happened to me and my

00:18:51.040 story, what happened happened because I was put in a unique,

00:18:59.920 situation or circumstance. And I truly do feel like,

00:19:07.660 you know, if there were a hundred other Marines that were put in that position,

00:19:12.660 they would have done the same thing for me because we got taught those same values, those same lessons

00:19:18.860 and the same history about the Marine Corps and all the Marines that had covered grenades for their

00:19:27.240 fellow Marines that were around them before. And so,

00:19:34.980 you know,

00:19:36.080 I think that everyone that voluntarily

00:19:42.540 chooses a path in life

00:19:46.300 where they, on their own, walk into a recruiting station and raise their right hand

00:19:55.180 to give up to their life for their country. I mean, you know,

00:20:02.200 you know that, but for any veterans or people listening, I mean,

00:20:06.100 think how really amazing and powerful that is. You know, you're not only saying,

00:20:12.840 send me, but you're saying,

00:20:15.360 I love and believe in this country,

00:20:20.080 my fellow countrymen and women,

00:20:22.800 and helping people around the world so much

00:20:25.900 that if it comes to it,

00:20:29.500 you know,

00:20:29.900 I'm privileged to leave this earth

00:20:32.640 at 18, 19, 20,

00:20:36.040 all the way up to, you know, 40,

00:20:37.940 50 years old for those that stay in an entire career.

00:20:41.460 So,

00:20:42.720 I'm just privileged

00:20:45.780 and honored and very proud

00:20:48.040 to be a part of a

00:20:50.040 group and an organization

00:20:52.300 and a military

00:20:53.240 where every single person

00:20:56.200 has done that.

00:20:57.580 So,

00:20:58.180 will I accept Hero?

00:21:01.120 Sure.

00:21:01.840 I'm very honored.

00:21:02.840 Thank you.

00:21:03.300 I appreciate it.

00:21:05.020 But everyone else did the same thing as me.

00:21:08.040 Everyone did it.

00:21:09.060 I don't know if they would, man.

00:21:10.500 I don't know.

00:21:11.160 I mean,

00:21:11.520 what I'm hearing you say is that

00:21:13.280 it's conditioned.

00:21:15.340 Right?

00:21:15.880 But I don't,

00:21:16.660 I mean,

00:21:17.140 I imagine partly it is.

00:21:18.620 No doubt.

00:21:19.500 Right?

00:21:19.720 You drink the Kool-Aid, if you will.

00:21:21.260 Yeah.

00:21:21.460 But it's more than that.

00:21:23.940 It's got to be more than that.

00:21:26.000 Because I don't think everybody would do what you did.

00:21:28.740 Even those who voluntarily raised their hand

00:21:30.880 and said,

00:21:31.800 I will lay down my life

00:21:32.840 for this cause,

00:21:33.880 for this country,

00:21:34.840 for my brothers.

00:21:36.380 I don't think everybody would do what you did.

00:21:42.200 I'm not challenging what you think about it.

00:21:44.220 Yeah, no, no.

00:21:44.760 I know.

00:21:45.440 I'm just curious.

00:21:46.160 You know what I'm saying?

00:21:46.820 Yeah, absolutely.

00:21:47.480 I know.

00:21:51.020 And thankfully,

00:21:52.620 and frustratingly,

00:21:55.080 and kind of the crazy thing is,

00:21:57.500 I might not ever have an answer to that.

00:22:01.900 Yeah.

00:22:02.340 You know?

00:22:02.760 Yeah.

00:22:04.180 Which is a good thing,

00:22:06.000 right?

00:22:06.260 Is that not everybody's going to be in that situation.

00:22:08.560 Absolutely.

00:22:09.160 Right.

00:22:09.320 Absolutely.

00:22:09.880 But,

00:22:10.360 if I had to elaborate any more

00:22:13.280 and really truly look into it,

00:22:16.980 you know,

00:22:17.240 say everybody wouldn't have done that.

00:22:21.220 I think that,

00:22:23.680 you know,

00:22:24.000 my parents,

00:22:25.180 the way I was raised,

00:22:27.380 the amazing friends

00:22:28.620 and influential people

00:22:30.160 and mentors,

00:22:30.960 my drill instructors,

00:22:33.800 my high school teachers,

00:22:36.260 my coaches throughout high school,

00:22:38.860 whatever sport I was playing,

00:22:42.240 you know,

00:22:43.240 everyone has

00:22:44.500 relationships

00:22:46.920 and everyone

00:22:47.740 comes across people in their life

00:22:50.240 that

00:22:50.660 maybe they knew,

00:22:52.000 they didn't know,

00:22:52.980 it was just

00:22:53.680 completely by chance circumstance.

00:22:56.840 Sure.

00:22:58.680 Everybody goes through life.

00:23:01.280 But,

00:23:02.520 you know,

00:23:03.240 it's up to us

00:23:04.340 to

00:23:04.980 take things from people,

00:23:08.260 good and bad.

00:23:09.900 You know,

00:23:10.160 you see someone,

00:23:11.200 you know,

00:23:12.600 littering out here in the parking lot,

00:23:14.960 you know,

00:23:15.580 makes you feel bad.

00:23:17.680 I don't ever want to do that.

00:23:19.500 I'm going to teach,

00:23:20.860 you know,

00:23:21.140 my kids.

00:23:22.260 Hopefully,

00:23:22.740 you know,

00:23:23.000 whenever I get blessed with kids,

00:23:25.760 you know,

00:23:26.340 not to litter.

00:23:27.820 You see someone holding the door for someone,

00:23:30.340 being kind to someone.

00:23:33.620 You can choose to learn from that.

00:23:35.760 And then you can not only choose to learn from that,

00:23:38.080 but apply it to your own life.

00:23:40.840 So,

00:23:41.620 you know,

00:23:41.980 looking back,

00:23:42.940 I do realize that

00:23:45.880 any time I interact with people,

00:23:47.620 even if it's just a casual conversation,

00:23:50.080 I try to,

00:23:51.300 you know,

00:23:52.780 I try to take something from them.

00:23:54.800 And I think having

00:23:56.320 amazing,

00:23:58.100 loving

00:23:58.480 family

00:23:59.680 and friends

00:24:01.540 and that entire support system

00:24:03.300 that I just went through,

00:24:04.720 I feel like my foundation

00:24:10.240 allowed me

00:24:12.940 to make a decision

00:24:14.940 that was so loving

00:24:16.080 for someone else

00:24:17.160 that,

00:24:19.860 you know,

00:24:20.320 and I don't remember seeing the grenade

00:24:22.060 or thinking about it.

00:24:24.220 And,

00:24:24.880 you know,

00:24:25.220 as you know,

00:24:26.080 when the pen's pulled

00:24:27.140 and it's thrown,

00:24:28.720 three,

00:24:29.320 two,

00:24:29.460 at the very most,

00:24:30.120 five second,

00:24:30.840 you know,

00:24:31.640 fuse.

00:24:31.960 And so,

00:24:34.200 you know,

00:24:34.800 who knows if I thought about it,

00:24:36.560 but if I was able to think about it

00:24:38.780 or even if it was just

00:24:40.500 reflexive,

00:24:42.060 I think the foundation

00:24:43.560 of just good people

00:24:44.800 that helped make me who I am,

00:24:47.280 you know,

00:24:47.740 allowed me to step up

00:24:49.200 in that moment of need.

00:24:50.760 Yeah.

00:24:51.360 Yeah,

00:24:51.560 I can definitely see that.

00:24:52.980 Let's,

00:24:53.540 let's talk about your deployment.

00:24:55.220 Let's talk about that

00:24:56.040 so we can get some context

00:24:57.040 to what it is

00:24:57.580 we're addressing here.

00:24:58.700 So,

00:24:59.160 you get done with

00:25:00.460 boot camp.

00:25:01.420 And then I imagine

00:25:02.540 you have some sort

00:25:03.760 of specialized training.

00:25:05.220 Is that right?

00:25:05.900 Outside of boot camp?

00:25:06.980 Yeah.

00:25:07.160 So,

00:25:07.460 after the 13 weeks

00:25:08.680 of boot camp,

00:25:09.680 we have a little over

00:25:11.020 two months

00:25:11.840 of what's called

00:25:13.340 school of infantry.

00:25:14.440 Okay.

00:25:14.860 And that was for those 0.98

00:25:16.040 that joined specifically

00:25:17.400 in the infantry.

00:25:18.680 Sure.

00:25:19.180 O3 field.

00:25:21.680 O3 is infantry?

00:25:22.960 Correct.

00:25:23.380 Okay.

00:25:23.740 And then the next two numbers

00:25:25.700 designates

00:25:26.860 your specialty.

00:25:27.980 Basic rifleman,

00:25:29.280 you know,

00:25:30.600 weapons guy,

00:25:31.340 mortar man,

00:25:31.880 assault man,

00:25:32.440 things like that.

00:25:33.220 Right.

00:25:34.060 And so,

00:25:34.980 all other Marines

00:25:37.180 in the Marine Corps

00:25:38.000 do kind of like

00:25:39.440 a two-week expedited

00:25:40.800 SOI

00:25:41.480 just to get the

00:25:42.220 basics of combat,

00:25:43.940 how to dig

00:25:44.480 fighting holes,

00:25:45.380 all of these things.

00:25:47.140 And,

00:25:48.040 you know,

00:25:48.940 but that was our job.

00:25:50.120 So,

00:25:50.380 we went straight

00:25:51.000 from boot camp

00:25:51.860 to school of infantry.

00:25:52.940 Okay.

00:25:53.460 after school

00:25:55.580 of infantry

00:25:56.160 is a terrifying

00:25:58.080 moment

00:25:58.660 where,

00:25:59.520 you know,

00:26:00.300 Kent Lajuna

00:26:00.860 is right down

00:26:01.480 the road

00:26:01.920 from Camp Geiger.

00:26:03.040 Okay.

00:26:03.820 And so,

00:26:04.880 these combat

00:26:06.480 hardened

00:26:07.140 seasoned Marines

00:26:08.440 not even wearing

00:26:09.760 skivvy shirts,

00:26:10.680 which I didn't even know

00:26:11.560 was allowed

00:26:12.180 to not wear

00:26:12.840 under the uniform.

00:26:13.360 There's not an option here.

00:26:14.460 You know,

00:26:14.760 full sleeve tattoos,

00:26:16.660 just,

00:26:17.580 you know,

00:26:17.900 they get on a bus

00:26:18.800 and they come pick you up.

00:26:20.840 And right there,

00:26:22.100 you know,

00:26:22.340 right after graduation

00:26:23.920 from SOI,

00:26:25.300 they group you up.

00:26:26.980 Hey,

00:26:27.260 you're going to 2-9,

00:26:28.460 you're going to 3-6,

00:26:30.580 see ya.

00:26:31.200 And you go straight

00:26:32.200 from there

00:26:32.740 on the bus

00:26:33.560 through the gates

00:26:34.680 of Kent Lejeune

00:26:35.460 and you move into

00:26:36.800 your barracks room.

00:26:38.040 Is that right?

00:26:38.460 And you,

00:26:39.060 you know,

00:26:39.380 from the second

00:26:40.180 you move in,

00:26:41.860 you know,

00:26:42.160 you start either training

00:26:43.280 or deploying

00:26:44.320 and running and gunning.

00:26:46.120 And probably

00:26:46.840 the scariest moment

00:26:47.900 out of my whole career

00:26:51.100 is we were in barracks

00:26:54.660 known as French Creek

00:26:55.840 on Kent Lejeune.

00:26:57.700 And these things,

00:26:59.740 hopefully they're not

00:27:00.740 still open and operating

00:27:02.140 because we had,

00:27:03.460 you know,

00:27:03.720 exit signs,

00:27:04.980 yo,

00:27:05.320 yeah,

00:27:05.560 for sure.

00:27:06.260 Who knows?

00:27:07.340 Exit signs hanging down

00:27:08.920 by wires out of the ceiling.

00:27:12.700 You know,

00:27:12.960 just infantry marines

00:27:14.320 have been living there

00:27:15.040 for many years.

00:27:16.020 Sure,

00:27:16.300 sure.

00:27:16.620 And it was one

00:27:17.320 of the few barracks

00:27:18.200 that were left

00:27:18.940 where everything

00:27:19.720 was internal.

00:27:20.980 You know,

00:27:21.140 all the rooms

00:27:21.980 like a hotel

00:27:23.180 and then all

00:27:24.280 the newer barracks

00:27:25.460 rooms are on the outside

00:27:26.860 which is not good

00:27:28.740 if you are

00:27:30.200 a new

00:27:30.960 fresh out of

00:27:32.180 SOI and boot camp

00:27:33.480 Marine.

00:27:34.900 And we get there

00:27:36.060 and okay,

00:27:36.800 it's not so bad.

00:27:37.600 There's not really

00:27:38.080 that Marines outside,

00:27:39.300 that many Marines outside.

00:27:40.800 You know,

00:27:41.320 middle of the day,

00:27:42.080 maybe they're off somewhere.

00:27:43.480 We can kind of sneak

00:27:44.640 in here under the radar

00:27:45.740 and get destroyed later

00:27:47.380 when they come back.

00:27:49.020 Dude,

00:27:49.900 open up that door

00:27:50.800 to the barracks.

00:27:53.100 They're all in there.

00:27:53.720 Our whole platoon

00:27:54.200 who had just got back

00:27:55.420 from Iraq

00:27:56.120 lining the inside

00:27:58.280 of the hallways

00:27:59.100 just waiting

00:28:00.160 to greet us.

00:28:01.840 It was like,

00:28:03.320 I felt like

00:28:03.780 their next meal

00:28:05.100 and they were just

00:28:05.840 like cage dogs

00:28:06.960 just waiting.

00:28:07.660 So what was

00:28:09.540 the initiation process?

00:28:11.380 What was that like?

00:28:12.940 You know,

00:28:13.640 it wasn't

00:28:14.320 like crazy

00:28:15.700 physical stuff

00:28:16.560 people think about.

00:28:17.640 Yeah.

00:28:17.940 It was just

00:28:19.020 you know,

00:28:20.820 yelling

00:28:21.160 and kind of

00:28:22.500 verbally destroying you. 0.65

00:28:25.520 Now,

00:28:26.060 if you were squared away,

00:28:27.260 if you prepared,

00:28:28.520 because most of

00:28:29.220 what you're doing

00:28:29.960 you know,

00:28:30.780 for weeks and months

00:28:31.800 while the first,

00:28:32.760 you know,

00:28:33.020 few that you're in,

00:28:34.340 you know,

00:28:35.720 they're giving you

00:28:36.340 knowledge classes.

00:28:37.220 Sure.

00:28:37.440 You know,

00:28:37.580 because even though

00:28:38.700 you're a boot,

00:28:39.920 you're a younger Marine,

00:28:40.880 the new guy,

00:28:42.180 you know,

00:28:42.540 whenever you do

00:28:43.300 deploy together,

00:28:44.800 which I think

00:28:45.360 they keep in the back

00:28:46.080 of their head

00:28:46.560 that,

00:28:47.160 hey,

00:28:48.080 once we deploy,

00:28:49.740 it's not the new guy

00:28:50.620 anymore.

00:28:50.920 No,

00:28:51.160 this is.

00:28:51.560 I'm covering your back.

00:28:52.580 Right.

00:28:53.080 You know,

00:28:53.360 this might be

00:28:54.340 my first deployment,

00:28:55.860 you know,

00:28:56.140 but I'm putting

00:28:57.140 my life on the line

00:28:57.940 just as much for you

00:28:58.960 as you are me.

00:29:00.180 So it's a mutual respect,

00:29:01.920 but at first,

00:29:02.580 you know,

00:29:03.180 there are hours

00:29:04.240 of classes a day

00:29:05.260 and this is just

00:29:06.000 by our one rank up,

00:29:07.780 by our team leaders

00:29:08.640 and the guys

00:29:09.300 within our platoon.

00:29:10.920 So as,

00:29:12.180 as kind of hard

00:29:13.800 and feeling like

00:29:15.760 kind of degrading

00:29:16.760 at it,

00:29:17.400 it is at times,

00:29:18.820 it is amazing

00:29:20.440 to kind of sit back

00:29:21.480 and think,

00:29:21.940 okay,

00:29:22.160 this really sucks,

00:29:23.240 but,

00:29:24.600 you know,

00:29:24.880 these guys are making me

00:29:26.160 memorize my nine line

00:29:27.760 to call in medivacs.

00:29:29.240 We're sitting here

00:29:30.400 in the barracks hallway

00:29:31.720 learning how to put

00:29:33.320 tourniquets on.

00:29:34.660 You know,

00:29:34.900 we're learning,

00:29:36.860 you know,

00:29:37.140 we're sitting outside

00:29:38.240 the barracks

00:29:38.920 for five hours.

00:29:40.420 I'm taking apart my saw,

00:29:42.060 putting it back together.

00:29:43.240 Then we get good at it.

00:29:44.540 We're all having races.

00:29:45.780 Whoever does good

00:29:46.740 might not get destroyed

00:29:48.200 for the rest of the day.

00:29:49.300 Yeah.

00:29:49.460 So it was,

00:29:51.100 it was super tough

00:29:52.720 and they,

00:29:53.960 you know,

00:29:54.200 expected a lot out of you,

00:29:56.000 you know,

00:29:56.560 but,

00:29:56.900 but boot camp,

00:29:58.240 you're kind of not going,

00:29:59.660 just going through the motions,

00:30:00.760 but you're really just learning

00:30:02.460 about our history,

00:30:04.940 uniforms,

00:30:05.560 what it's like to be a Marine,

00:30:07.200 to carry yourself as a Marine.

00:30:09.240 But when you hit the fleet

00:30:10.460 and you're with those guys,

00:30:11.780 it becomes real.

00:30:12.940 Yeah.

00:30:13.340 And so,

00:30:14.320 you know,

00:30:14.600 you're doing things

00:30:15.520 to better yourself,

00:30:17.260 your platoon,

00:30:17.960 and hopefully bring

00:30:19.640 more of your guys back alive.

00:30:22.040 Sure.

00:30:22.560 So,

00:30:23.480 an incredible experience.

00:30:25.380 You know,

00:30:25.600 luckily,

00:30:26.300 we were only dog food

00:30:28.360 for a few weeks

00:30:29.160 because we bounced out

00:30:30.100 on our first deployment

00:30:31.100 very quickly.

00:30:32.200 And that was to Afghanistan?

00:30:33.840 Actually,

00:30:34.460 Afghanistan was second.

00:30:35.640 Oh, okay.

00:30:36.080 Our first one was a little

00:30:37.160 three-month pump

00:30:38.160 down through the Caribbean.

00:30:40.940 No,

00:30:41.280 we were not on vacay.

00:30:42.800 We went down,

00:30:44.140 stopped to Guantanamo Bay,

00:30:45.940 did some training

00:30:46.780 and,

00:30:47.600 you know,

00:30:47.960 obviously,

00:30:48.420 I don't know

00:30:48.800 what to expect

00:30:49.440 going to Guantanamo Bay.

00:30:50.980 Sure, yeah.

00:30:51.800 But very rugged,

00:30:54.720 mountainous,

00:30:55.660 extremely hot.

00:30:59.140 And so,

00:30:59.680 the terrain

00:31:00.240 mixed with the heat,

00:31:01.380 humidity,

00:31:02.480 was a good environment

00:31:06.780 and atmosphere

00:31:07.400 for us to start

00:31:09.140 what's called a workup.

00:31:11.300 Yep.

00:31:11.520 And so,

00:31:12.440 that was kind of

00:31:13.520 kicking off

00:31:14.380 our months-long

00:31:17.180 training period

00:31:18.200 to get us ready

00:31:19.780 to go to Afghanistan.

00:31:21.960 And so,

00:31:22.440 a few of our Marines

00:31:23.500 kind of went off

00:31:25.000 to the side,

00:31:25.600 did their own thing.

00:31:26.380 They helped train

00:31:27.300 Dominican Republic forces

00:31:29.700 on how to,

00:31:32.160 you know,

00:31:32.920 get on and off helicopters,

00:31:35.120 how to set up

00:31:36.000 security perimeters,

00:31:37.200 you know,

00:31:37.360 just basic stuff,

00:31:38.480 collaborating with other nations.

00:31:39.820 really interesting

00:31:42.140 and amazing

00:31:43.260 kind of first deployment,

00:31:44.560 you know,

00:31:44.720 being on a Navy ship,

00:31:46.540 you know,

00:31:47.460 a few months ago

00:31:48.120 I was in high school

00:31:49.060 and now I'm cruising

00:31:50.400 through beautiful

00:31:51.440 blue waters

00:31:52.120 of the Caribbean

00:31:52.740 and I'm surrounded

00:31:54.080 by, you know,

00:31:54.680 20 helicopters

00:31:55.540 on this flight deck

00:31:57.180 doing shooting drills

00:31:58.400 right off the deck.

00:31:59.560 Is that right?

00:32:00.160 Oh, yeah.

00:32:00.520 That's cool.

00:32:01.000 It was awesome, man.

00:32:02.020 That is cool.

00:32:02.720 And so,

00:32:03.560 you know,

00:32:04.100 but,

00:32:05.020 kind of the highlight

00:32:07.600 for good or bad

00:32:09.360 on that deployment

00:32:10.100 was we're cruising back,

00:32:13.020 coming home,

00:32:14.000 we're trying to make it home

00:32:14.900 by Christmas Eve

00:32:15.860 of 2009

00:32:17.140 and word got passed around

00:32:21.920 that President Obama

00:32:23.040 was going to make,

00:32:24.760 you know,

00:32:25.300 he's going to address

00:32:25.900 the world

00:32:26.720 and he was going to make

00:32:27.720 a very big announcement

00:32:28.620 and so,

00:32:30.420 we huddled around

00:32:31.540 this super small

00:32:33.880 half static

00:32:35.840 written TV

00:32:36.940 You were on the ship

00:32:38.960 at the time?

00:32:39.460 Correct.

00:32:39.800 Okay.

00:32:40.200 Yeah, yeah.

00:32:40.880 And we're all just like,

00:32:41.960 you know,

00:32:42.260 smooshed into this room

00:32:43.720 in the bowels

00:32:45.820 of this Navy ship

00:32:47.340 and we're watching

00:32:50.060 this address

00:32:51.160 and President Obama

00:32:53.200 gives a thumbs up

00:32:54.620 and decides to send,

00:32:56.440 I believe,

00:32:56.900 a troop surge

00:32:57.560 of 30,000 troops

00:32:59.980 and allied forces

00:33:01.100 into Afghanistan

00:33:03.120 as maybe not

00:33:04.820 a final push

00:33:05.740 but to really,

00:33:07.260 you know,

00:33:09.100 increase and solidify

00:33:10.740 efforts to continue

00:33:12.500 fighting the Taliban

00:33:14.560 and their,

00:33:15.980 you know,

00:33:16.440 not only kind of

00:33:17.400 terrorist activities

00:33:18.360 within their country

00:33:19.340 and around the world

00:33:20.320 but also,

00:33:22.840 and what I think

00:33:24.200 a lot of people miss

00:33:25.100 in the big,

00:33:26.200 you know,

00:33:26.860 mainstream media

00:33:27.880 and political side

00:33:29.100 of things,

00:33:30.460 you know,

00:33:30.780 we were there

00:33:32.340 helping people

00:33:33.260 that are

00:33:35.000 seriously oppressed

00:33:36.920 and truly,

00:33:38.620 truly struggling.

00:33:39.980 I mean,

00:33:40.860 you know,

00:33:41.180 it kind of surprises

00:33:41.940 people when I say,

00:33:43.040 you know,

00:33:43.900 to have a pair

00:33:46.360 of old raggedy

00:33:48.140 sandals on your feet,

00:33:50.060 you know,

00:33:50.680 is huge.

00:33:51.840 Mm-hmm.

00:33:52.720 Like,

00:33:54.060 you know,

00:33:54.600 talking to kids

00:33:55.800 that through a translator

00:33:57.800 would ask me,

00:33:58.980 and I talk about this

00:33:59.820 story in the book,

00:34:00.560 but that would ask me,

00:34:02.620 is everywhere in the world

00:34:03.800 like Disney World

00:34:05.000 or is everywhere in America

00:34:06.820 like Disney World?

00:34:08.080 Oh.

00:34:08.520 And can you really

00:34:09.640 just go into a room

00:34:10.960 in your house

00:34:11.820 and turn a magical knob

00:34:14.020 and get fresh,

00:34:14.780 clean drinking water?

00:34:16.580 Really?

00:34:16.600 And what is school like?

00:34:19.120 Isn't that crazy?

00:34:19.940 Yeah, yeah.

00:34:20.700 Absolutely.

00:34:21.120 We don't think about that.

00:34:21.900 Absolutely.

00:34:22.740 And, you know,

00:34:23.680 we can go to

00:34:24.860 our jobs

00:34:26.740 and we can focus

00:34:28.800 on our jobs

00:34:29.660 and not have to worry

00:34:30.760 that we're going

00:34:31.620 to come home

00:34:32.560 and our family

00:34:35.300 is going to be

00:34:36.340 killed,

00:34:38.040 stoned to death,

00:34:39.340 or beheaded

00:34:40.320 because you believe

00:34:42.020 in something different

00:34:43.080 than your next door neighbor

00:34:44.080 or you were caught

00:34:45.340 reading

00:34:45.980 a first grade level book.

00:34:48.220 I mean,

00:34:49.200 it's just so crazy.

00:34:50.300 So, you know,

00:34:52.400 no matter what

00:34:54.440 the big picture reasons are,

00:34:56.440 you know,

00:34:56.800 go in there

00:34:57.280 to help people.

00:34:58.860 And so,

00:34:59.780 we knew when he gave

00:35:01.300 that thumbs up

00:35:02.340 that we were going

00:35:03.340 to be one of the first

00:35:04.160 units in line

00:35:05.360 to push into Afghanistan.

00:35:07.700 Because you had

00:35:08.240 already been in the

00:35:09.180 process of training,

00:35:09.980 you just got done

00:35:10.520 with this,

00:35:10.960 or wrapping up

00:35:11.520 this current deployment,

00:35:12.640 you're basically

00:35:13.540 mission ready

00:35:14.400 at this point.

00:35:15.220 Correct.

00:35:15.660 Okay.

00:35:16.440 Getting mission ready

00:35:17.620 and becoming

00:35:18.520 more cohesive

00:35:19.780 as a unit.

00:35:20.920 Sure, yeah.

00:35:21.480 Because even though

00:35:21.920 we were on this deployment,

00:35:23.480 we were still

00:35:24.280 only three or four months

00:35:25.420 into the real Marine Corps.

00:35:27.960 And so,

00:35:28.480 you know,

00:35:28.720 I think probably

00:35:30.020 our higher ups,

00:35:31.800 obviously,

00:35:32.840 leaders

00:35:34.520 throughout government

00:35:36.160 and Department of Defense

00:35:37.620 probably knew

00:35:39.240 what was coming

00:35:40.140 down the pipeline.

00:35:41.300 And that,

00:35:42.720 unofficially without us knowing,

00:35:44.360 kicked off that work up

00:35:45.660 to start getting ready.

00:35:46.760 Yeah.

00:35:47.000 But yeah,

00:35:47.820 man,

00:35:48.000 we got back

00:35:48.700 just in time for Christmas,

00:35:50.440 spent a few days

00:35:51.100 with the family on leave,

00:35:52.440 and then started

00:35:54.040 that seven-month work up.

00:35:55.780 Is that how long

00:35:56.380 the work up is?

00:35:57.020 Seven months?

00:35:57.560 Yeah.

00:35:57.940 Wow.

00:35:58.440 Yeah.

00:35:58.960 And maybe longer,

00:36:00.240 maybe shorter,

00:36:00.940 depending on when

00:36:01.740 you're set to ship out.

00:36:03.460 But July,

00:36:05.520 we got on the buses,

00:36:07.020 and it was very surreal

00:36:09.160 to give my mom

00:36:10.780 a hug and a kiss

00:36:12.000 and get on the bus.

00:36:13.620 And I had this moment

00:36:15.360 where,

00:36:16.140 you know,

00:36:17.160 we're on a bus

00:36:18.380 sitting outside the barracks

00:36:21.240 in North Carolina,

00:36:22.680 but I'm sitting there

00:36:25.520 and I'm looking out

00:36:26.340 out the window

00:36:27.360 and I'm glad I did

00:36:30.160 because if I wouldn't have made it,

00:36:31.600 I would have seen my mom

00:36:32.560 for the last time.

00:36:33.560 But I had never seen

00:36:36.020 such a look

00:36:40.520 of true despair

00:36:41.540 on her face.

00:36:42.520 Mm-hmm.

00:36:43.560 Just completely

00:36:45.160 at a loss

00:36:46.420 emotionally

00:36:47.860 and deep down inside

00:36:49.400 of what to do.

00:36:50.300 I mean,

00:36:50.700 her oldest son

00:36:51.580 is going

00:36:52.820 and being

00:36:54.200 inserted by helicopter

00:36:56.780 into the worst

00:36:58.940 little,

00:36:59.840 you know,

00:37:01.100 50-square-mile patch

00:37:02.800 of farmland

00:37:03.640 in southern Afghanistan

00:37:04.760 where the Taliban

00:37:06.320 is essentially

00:37:07.180 making one

00:37:08.420 of their last

00:37:09.360 strongholds.

00:37:10.500 Mm-hmm.

00:37:11.040 You know,

00:37:11.360 protecting,

00:37:12.280 you know,

00:37:13.320 those acres

00:37:14.920 and acres

00:37:15.460 and miles

00:37:16.060 and miles

00:37:16.500 and fields

00:37:17.160 of drugs

00:37:17.820 that fund

00:37:18.620 all of these activities.

00:37:20.320 Is that what it was?

00:37:20.880 They were growing

00:37:21.740 their crops there?

00:37:23.160 Yeah.

00:37:23.800 So I talk about this

00:37:24.780 in the book,

00:37:25.320 but I believe

00:37:26.900 in 2011,

00:37:28.300 a study

00:37:29.260 done by the UN,

00:37:30.120 you know,

00:37:31.760 you go anywhere

00:37:32.360 in the world,

00:37:34.040 pick up heroin

00:37:34.700 off the street.

00:37:35.600 Yeah.

00:37:35.880 There's an 82% chance,

00:37:37.620 I believe it was,

00:37:39.220 that it originated,

00:37:40.860 you know,

00:37:41.160 from that little area

00:37:42.860 in Afghanistan.

00:37:42.960 And that's where you were?

00:37:43.840 That's where you guys

00:37:44.480 were stationed?

00:37:44.740 Correct.

00:37:45.100 Yeah,

00:37:45.360 in Marja.

00:37:46.120 And so it was just

00:37:47.100 fields of never-ending poppies.

00:37:50.640 How many guys

00:37:52.740 went with you

00:37:53.480 in your unit?

00:37:54.500 That's probably

00:37:55.040 not the right term,

00:37:55.680 but how many guys

00:37:56.220 went with you?

00:37:57.480 Because when you were

00:37:58.440 stationed where you were,

00:37:59.920 it seems like there was

00:38:00.520 only, what,

00:38:01.280 nine or ten of you?

00:38:03.000 But, I mean,

00:38:03.640 I imagine a whole lot

00:38:04.480 more of you went.

00:38:05.760 Correct.

00:38:06.260 Yeah.

00:38:06.900 In November 21st

00:38:08.560 when I was injured,

00:38:09.460 there was only myself

00:38:10.600 and my squad,

00:38:12.400 which a squad is

00:38:13.340 roughly 12 Marines

00:38:14.620 and a Navy Corpsman,

00:38:16.220 which is our medics.

00:38:17.280 Right.

00:38:18.580 You know,

00:38:18.900 but for the four months

00:38:21.440 of our deployment

00:38:22.960 leading up to that

00:38:24.160 operation where I was

00:38:25.520 injured,

00:38:25.920 we lived in a small

00:38:29.560 mud compound

00:38:30.820 in a village,

00:38:33.040 myself and my platoon.

00:38:35.780 And a platoon is

00:38:36.640 roughly 60 Marines

00:38:37.940 Okay.

00:38:38.460 broken down into

00:38:39.340 three or four squads.

00:38:40.840 Right.

00:38:41.480 And so,

00:38:42.260 yeah,

00:38:43.180 but just...

00:38:45.240 So there was,

00:38:46.580 you said roughly

00:38:47.180 60 of you?

00:38:48.320 Correct.

00:38:48.720 In the platoon?

00:38:51.000 In a village?

00:38:52.340 Correct.

00:38:53.480 Yeah.

00:38:53.800 Just living in their homes 0.96

00:38:55.880 or an abandoned home

00:38:56.900 or like,

00:38:57.740 how did that...

00:38:58.660 Because when I was in Iraq,

00:38:59.760 we had our FOBs,

00:39:00.940 our forward operating bases,

00:39:02.180 right?

00:39:02.400 But these were secured

00:39:03.500 locations.

00:39:05.340 Now,

00:39:05.540 we were in the middle

00:39:06.220 of Ramadi,

00:39:07.220 surrounded,

00:39:08.240 but it was still

00:39:09.940 a secure operational base

00:39:11.940 that had been established.

00:39:13.180 Was it similar to that

00:39:14.100 or completely different?

00:39:17.420 Well,

00:39:17.920 there was 60 Marines inside,

00:39:20.100 so I think it was more secure

00:39:23.860 than not.

00:39:25.160 But,

00:39:26.200 you know,

00:39:27.280 we were in this village,

00:39:29.280 you know,

00:39:29.860 we were so far behind enemy lines

00:39:32.320 and out in the middle of nowhere,

00:39:34.160 everything we needed

00:39:36.380 through the whole deployment,

00:39:37.840 bottles of water,

00:39:38.860 food,

00:39:39.320 ammo,

00:39:40.340 sandbags to fill

00:39:41.540 to try to protect ourselves

00:39:43.100 from bullets and blasts.

00:39:45.400 Everything had to be brought

00:39:46.680 in by helicopter.

00:39:48.260 There was,

00:39:48.760 you know,

00:39:49.320 only

00:39:49.860 dirt roads.

00:39:53.960 There was no infrastructure,

00:39:55.600 you know,

00:39:56.000 no Humvees,

00:39:57.480 no seven tons,

00:39:58.720 no vehicles

00:39:59.360 could come down these roads

00:40:00.700 for fear of collapsing off

00:40:02.200 and turning over

00:40:03.600 upside down

00:40:04.780 and canals

00:40:05.520 and possibly Marines drowning.

00:40:07.200 Yeah.

00:40:07.360 And so,

00:40:08.500 but even with that said,

00:40:09.560 man,

00:40:09.780 sometimes the helicopter

00:40:10.820 would come in

00:40:11.320 to drop the supplies

00:40:12.380 or the Osprey

00:40:13.300 and they would get so lit up.

00:40:15.880 Really?

00:40:16.340 That they would have to

00:40:17.520 kind of bail

00:40:18.420 and come back at night

00:40:19.740 and drop our stuff

00:40:21.120 under nightfall.

00:40:23.120 So,

00:40:23.440 and,

00:40:24.880 you know,

00:40:25.160 with that said,

00:40:25.900 I mean,

00:40:26.520 every day

00:40:27.500 from sunup

00:40:29.080 to sundown

00:40:30.020 was a nonstop

00:40:32.760 vicious fight

00:40:33.920 for our lives

00:40:34.640 and fight for survival.

00:40:36.260 What was the objective?

00:40:38.340 So,

00:40:39.300 your objective,

00:40:41.400 as you know,

00:40:41.980 depends on

00:40:42.960 when you're going

00:40:44.000 into that area

00:40:44.940 or that country

00:40:45.940 and kind of

00:40:47.200 how you're fitting

00:40:48.280 into the mission.

00:40:49.280 Mm-hmm.

00:40:49.860 You know,

00:40:50.500 the Marine Corps,

00:40:51.840 we are

00:40:53.680 strictly a

00:40:55.740 combat element,

00:40:58.580 if you will.

00:40:59.960 You know,

00:41:00.360 we don't have

00:41:00.880 our own medical branch

00:41:02.100 like the Army

00:41:02.860 and the Navy

00:41:03.540 and the Air Force.

00:41:04.260 of course.

00:41:06.320 So,

00:41:07.720 our mission

00:41:10.020 was kind of

00:41:10.720 first in,

00:41:13.180 you know,

00:41:13.560 get rid of

00:41:14.700 the bad guys,

00:41:16.680 either push them out

00:41:17.800 or eliminate them.

00:41:19.160 And as we did that

00:41:21.940 and expanded

00:41:22.900 that presence,

00:41:24.220 you know,

00:41:24.600 later on,

00:41:25.880 once we kind of

00:41:26.580 cleared the way,

00:41:28.360 either other branches

00:41:29.420 or other

00:41:30.760 kind of jobs

00:41:31.880 within the Marine Corps

00:41:32.880 engineers

00:41:33.560 can come in

00:41:34.820 and fill in

00:41:35.500 behind you

00:41:36.340 and start to

00:41:37.900 build the foundational

00:41:39.260 steps for

00:41:40.280 the infrastructure

00:41:41.220 that I was

00:41:41.900 kind of alluding

00:41:42.720 to earlier.

00:41:43.340 Right.

00:41:43.840 You know,

00:41:44.200 roads.

00:41:46.020 All the logistical

00:41:47.020 planning and everything

00:41:47.960 else.

00:41:48.180 Logistical planning,

00:41:49.440 you know,

00:41:50.140 getting water

00:41:51.440 and not having

00:41:52.160 to get water

00:41:52.980 out of a,

00:41:53.560 you know,

00:41:54.300 dirty well

00:41:55.040 with an old

00:41:55.980 gas can

00:41:56.720 or dirty bucket. 1.00

00:41:58.560 So,

00:41:59.400 in a summarized

00:42:01.680 version,

00:42:02.400 just

00:42:02.660 literally

00:42:04.160 going on

00:42:05.580 foot patrol

00:42:06.240 all day,

00:42:07.540 every day,

00:42:08.380 we would send

00:42:09.260 out

00:42:09.600 a morning patrol,

00:42:11.300 late morning,

00:42:13.380 early afternoon

00:42:14.060 patrol,

00:42:15.240 late afternoon

00:42:16.000 patrol,

00:42:16.680 and a night

00:42:17.160 patrol every

00:42:17.940 day.

00:42:19.500 And,

00:42:19.660 as crazy as it

00:42:20.800 sounds,

00:42:21.480 really our only

00:42:22.260 mission was to

00:42:23.380 walk outside of

00:42:24.220 those friendly

00:42:24.700 lines,

00:42:25.800 loaded down with

00:42:26.540 as much ammo

00:42:27.340 as we might need

00:42:28.540 for a three or

00:42:29.500 four hour

00:42:29.960 firefight,

00:42:31.120 and we would

00:42:32.000 walk around

00:42:32.740 until we got

00:42:33.540 shot at and we

00:42:34.380 would pick fights

00:42:34.960 with the enemy.

00:42:36.100 And that's how

00:42:36.540 we would draw

00:42:37.160 them out,

00:42:37.980 and that's how

00:42:38.560 we would either

00:42:39.260 push them out

00:42:40.060 or eliminate

00:42:40.720 them.

00:42:41.300 To,

00:42:42.380 like,

00:42:42.880 you know,

00:42:43.180 give these

00:42:43.560 people,

00:42:44.080 like,

00:42:44.440 some hope

00:42:45.080 that maybe

00:42:45.520 one day,

00:42:46.640 you know,

00:42:47.340 they'll be able

00:42:48.000 to wake up

00:42:48.660 and taste

00:42:49.340 freedom.

00:42:50.220 Were the people

00:42:51.160 in that village

00:42:51.980 or in that

00:42:52.440 surrounding area,

00:42:53.540 what was the

00:42:54.240 general consensus

00:42:55.060 about us

00:42:56.040 being there?

00:42:58.540 Was it welcomed?

00:42:59.620 Was it unwelcomed?

00:43:00.700 Probably a mix

00:43:01.260 of both?

00:43:02.280 A mix of both?

00:43:03.740 I would say

00:43:04.840 a lot more

00:43:06.420 welcomed,

00:43:07.500 but see,

00:43:08.380 the trick is,

00:43:09.260 and the

00:43:10.540 difficult thing

00:43:11.260 is,

00:43:12.420 because of

00:43:15.120 some of the

00:43:15.760 things I've

00:43:16.100 already said,

00:43:16.740 you know,

00:43:16.940 these people

00:43:17.620 are living

00:43:20.000 in such

00:43:20.680 constant fear

00:43:21.660 that,

00:43:23.600 you know,

00:43:26.660 you do get

00:43:27.300 those kids

00:43:28.060 and some

00:43:29.080 of the adults

00:43:29.580 you talk to

00:43:30.320 that express

00:43:32.640 that they're

00:43:34.320 so happy to

00:43:35.060 have us there.

00:43:35.760 and they

00:43:37.580 are so

00:43:37.920 excited for,

00:43:39.400 you know,

00:43:39.840 good things

00:43:40.380 to come

00:43:40.820 and maybe

00:43:41.140 to have a

00:43:41.460 school one

00:43:41.860 day.

00:43:43.520 But the

00:43:44.860 vast majority

00:43:45.680 of the

00:43:45.920 population

00:43:46.500 is so

00:43:47.180 terrified

00:43:47.700 to say

00:43:48.260 anything

00:43:48.660 because

00:43:49.860 everything's

00:43:50.540 so unconventional

00:43:51.180 over there.

00:43:51.920 You know,

00:43:52.100 one guy can

00:43:52.640 be telling

00:43:53.000 you he loves

00:43:53.520 you,

00:43:53.760 giving you

00:43:54.080 a hug

00:43:54.380 at the

00:43:54.600 end of

00:43:54.780 the day,

00:43:55.500 offering you

00:43:56.160 chai and

00:43:57.020 tea and

00:43:58.120 to eat

00:43:58.680 with his

00:43:58.980 family.

00:44:00.060 You know,

00:44:00.480 the next day

00:44:01.040 you're getting

00:44:01.360 shot at,

00:44:02.340 you wrap up

00:44:03.120 the same

00:44:03.560 guy,

00:44:04.000 and he

00:44:05.280 has gunshot

00:44:05.920 residue,

00:44:06.700 you know,

00:44:06.900 test positive

00:44:07.520 that he's

00:44:07.920 been shooting

00:44:08.500 a weapon.

00:44:09.800 And everyone

00:44:10.420 over there

00:44:10.840 has weapons,

00:44:11.680 so that

00:44:12.700 might actually

00:44:13.520 be true

00:44:14.080 for defense,

00:44:15.080 you know,

00:44:15.840 but everything's

00:44:17.160 so unconventional.

00:44:18.000 It's like the

00:44:18.440 Taliban has 0.99

00:44:19.080 eyes everywhere

00:44:19.760 and they

00:44:22.400 might not

00:44:23.000 know that

00:44:23.520 or might not

00:44:24.000 be 100%

00:44:24.920 confident or

00:44:25.720 feel safe

00:44:26.340 enough to

00:44:26.740 say anything.

00:44:28.020 You know,

00:44:28.240 the Taliban

00:44:28.600 is not wearing

00:44:29.200 uniforms.

00:44:31.500 And so

00:44:32.020 it's

00:44:33.940 difficult

00:44:38.680 when you're

00:44:39.200 dealing with

00:44:39.560 the population

00:44:40.240 that's so

00:44:40.800 scared of

00:44:41.400 the repercussions

00:44:42.380 of trying

00:44:43.260 to help

00:44:43.780 their own

00:44:44.300 country

00:44:44.740 that

00:44:46.380 they might

00:44:48.120 not say

00:44:49.760 anything or

00:44:50.340 they might

00:44:50.800 not take up

00:44:51.520 arms with

00:44:52.100 you.

00:44:53.020 you know,

00:44:53.900 so it

00:44:55.200 was a

00:44:55.700 challenge,

00:44:56.360 but

00:44:56.660 you know,

00:44:58.640 I definitely

00:44:59.300 think that

00:45:02.140 the majority

00:45:03.320 of people

00:45:04.120 hoped for

00:45:05.980 a better

00:45:07.020 life.

00:45:07.680 Yeah.

00:45:08.640 Yeah.

00:45:09.780 So,

00:45:10.880 what were

00:45:11.260 your,

00:45:11.960 you said you

00:45:12.460 guys went

00:45:12.780 on these

00:45:13.320 patrols,

00:45:13.900 what was

00:45:14.200 your rotation

00:45:15.000 like?

00:45:15.720 Like,

00:45:15.940 how often

00:45:16.340 would you

00:45:16.680 go out

00:45:16.960 on these

00:45:17.300 foot patrols?

00:45:19.320 Great

00:45:19.640 question,

00:45:20.320 and actually

00:45:20.840 can I hit

00:45:21.360 on one

00:45:21.760 more point

00:45:22.680 and a

00:45:23.780 story that

00:45:24.400 kind of

00:45:24.740 summarizes

00:45:25.300 all of

00:45:25.680 that perfectly.

00:45:26.660 so,

00:45:28.600 middle of

00:45:30.040 the night

00:45:30.300 one night,

00:45:32.440 hand grenade

00:45:33.020 attack comes.

00:45:35.200 Ironically,

00:45:36.120 the grenade

00:45:36.680 blew up,

00:45:38.140 and at this

00:45:38.780 point we

00:45:39.200 had got

00:45:39.520 tense.

00:45:40.040 When we

00:45:40.300 first got

00:45:40.880 there,

00:45:41.420 I mean,

00:45:41.880 it was so

00:45:42.660 primitive,

00:45:43.860 just because

00:45:44.340 we were the

00:45:44.900 first ones

00:45:45.380 in there.

00:45:45.840 Yeah.

00:45:46.760 Sleeping on

00:45:47.340 the ground,

00:45:48.380 you know,

00:45:49.140 for our

00:45:51.220 whole seven

00:45:51.640 month deployment

00:45:52.200 we'd have

00:45:52.540 showers,

00:45:53.200 but like

00:45:53.600 months into

00:45:54.480 it,

00:45:54.920 around

00:45:55.460 very end

00:45:56.300 of November,

00:45:57.280 December,

00:45:57.920 we got

00:45:59.220 tense.

00:45:59.860 At that

00:46:00.240 point I'd

00:46:00.780 already been

00:46:01.180 injured and

00:46:01.780 medevaced,

00:46:02.940 but a

00:46:03.300 grenade came

00:46:03.820 over the

00:46:04.160 wall in

00:46:04.520 the middle

00:46:04.800 of the

00:46:05.060 night and

00:46:06.020 ironically

00:46:08.020 blew up

00:46:08.820 right next

00:46:09.400 to the

00:46:09.680 rack that

00:46:10.200 I had

00:46:10.580 been occupying

00:46:11.320 two weeks

00:46:11.800 before.

00:46:12.240 Really?

00:46:12.660 This is

00:46:14.040 after your

00:46:15.060 injuries.

00:46:15.920 Oh my

00:46:16.240 goodness.

00:46:16.380 So for

00:46:16.660 some reason

00:46:17.120 I was a

00:46:17.620 grenade

00:46:17.900 magnet,

00:46:18.580 but this

00:46:20.440 grenade blows

00:46:21.060 up,

00:46:22.120 you know,

00:46:22.560 obviously

00:46:23.000 middle of

00:46:23.440 the night,

00:46:24.660 no one

00:46:25.020 sees anything,

00:46:26.020 don't know

00:46:26.420 who threw

00:46:27.320 it,

00:46:27.460 where it

00:46:27.700 came from.

00:46:29.380 Fast forward

00:46:29.880 a couple

00:46:30.220 nights,

00:46:31.200 this kid,

00:46:32.720 middle of

00:46:33.200 the night

00:46:33.480 again,

00:46:34.280 comes to

00:46:34.700 the base.

00:46:36.800 Afghani 1.00

00:46:37.400 kid,

00:46:38.140 is that

00:46:38.260 correct?

00:46:38.640 Correct.

00:46:38.740 local kid

00:46:40.120 from the

00:46:40.640 village

00:46:41.260 where we

00:46:41.680 had been

00:46:41.940 living and

00:46:42.340 operating.

00:46:44.020 And this

00:46:44.500 kid,

00:46:45.540 every time

00:46:47.300 we left

00:46:47.740 on patrol,

00:46:49.120 at least

00:46:49.460 for the

00:46:49.680 whole four

00:46:50.060 months I

00:46:50.460 was there,

00:46:51.420 he would

00:46:51.900 salute us,

00:46:53.100 always come

00:46:54.020 up and

00:46:54.340 talk to us,

00:46:55.120 say what's

00:46:55.540 up.

00:46:55.880 We taught

00:46:56.220 him how

00:46:56.520 to do

00:46:57.860 a little

00:46:58.320 dap up

00:46:58.820 handshake.

00:47:00.060 Cool

00:47:00.460 kid.

00:47:01.660 Comes to

00:47:02.100 us in

00:47:02.360 the middle

00:47:02.620 of the

00:47:02.860 night,

00:47:03.260 and I

00:47:03.640 get told

00:47:04.040 this by

00:47:04.480 my

00:47:04.660 buddies

00:47:04.900 later on

00:47:05.420 obviously.

00:47:06.580 Comes to

00:47:06.960 us in

00:47:07.180 the middle

00:47:07.420 of the

00:47:07.660 night,

00:47:08.260 hysterically,

00:47:08.740 crying,

00:47:10.320 and before

00:47:11.000 he even

00:47:11.320 says

00:47:11.640 anything,

00:47:12.520 begging

00:47:12.820 us not

00:47:13.620 to kill

00:47:14.040 him.

00:47:15.380 Obviously,

00:47:16.080 no matter

00:47:16.460 what he

00:47:17.340 tells us,

00:47:18.020 or what

00:47:18.400 he could

00:47:18.720 have

00:47:18.840 possibly

00:47:19.240 done,

00:47:20.360 we would

00:47:21.320 never do

00:47:21.900 anything

00:47:22.260 physical.

00:47:22.800 Right,

00:47:22.980 of course.

00:47:23.840 But,

00:47:24.520 you know,

00:47:24.860 him being

00:47:25.200 absolutely

00:47:25.600 terrified,

00:47:26.860 that's how

00:47:27.400 he kind

00:47:28.120 of laid

00:47:28.620 the precedent.

00:47:30.800 Followed

00:47:31.320 by,

00:47:33.040 he had

00:47:33.500 told us

00:47:34.340 a couple

00:47:34.940 of times

00:47:35.300 throughout

00:47:35.500 the

00:47:35.660 deployment

00:47:36.140 where

00:47:36.820 IEDs 0.99

00:47:37.840 were

00:47:37.980 buried.

00:47:38.820 Because

00:47:39.300 even

00:47:39.580 though

00:47:39.760 the

00:47:39.940 Taliban 0.97

00:47:40.280 might

00:47:40.900 kind

00:47:41.460 of

00:47:41.580 hate

00:47:41.820 their

00:47:42.020 own

00:47:42.180 people

00:47:42.600 and

00:47:42.880 the

00:47:43.020 local

00:47:43.260 population,

00:47:45.400 people

00:47:45.720 know,

00:47:46.280 just like

00:47:46.660 people know

00:47:47.140 in their

00:47:47.460 neighborhoods

00:47:47.780 here in

00:47:48.400 America,

00:47:49.220 what's up

00:47:50.040 and where

00:47:50.580 IEDs are. 0.95

00:47:52.080 And this

00:47:52.440 kid a couple

00:47:52.920 of times

00:47:53.280 had told us

00:47:53.760 where IEDs

00:47:54.400 were,

00:47:54.820 one of them

00:47:55.460 extremely

00:47:56.040 significant,

00:47:56.800 that would

00:47:57.040 have injured

00:47:57.440 or killed

00:47:57.880 a lot

00:47:58.160 of Marines.

00:47:58.620 and we

00:48:00.800 always kept

00:48:01.320 it under

00:48:01.740 wraps,

00:48:02.240 but I

00:48:02.500 think

00:48:02.800 just

00:48:03.680 association

00:48:04.380 of him

00:48:05.620 saying

00:48:07.520 what's up

00:48:08.040 to us,

00:48:08.820 talking to

00:48:09.400 us while

00:48:09.700 we're on

00:48:09.980 patrol,

00:48:10.940 just being

00:48:12.020 friendly with

00:48:12.740 us,

00:48:13.120 and us

00:48:14.760 mysteriously

00:48:15.620 finding some

00:48:16.680 of these

00:48:16.940 IEDs, 0.80

00:48:17.640 even though

00:48:17.980 we have

00:48:18.280 metal

00:48:18.580 detectors,

00:48:19.480 and if

00:48:20.260 they don't

00:48:21.180 plant the

00:48:21.740 IED well,

00:48:22.600 there's

00:48:22.840 disturbed

00:48:23.380 dirt.

00:48:23.800 Sure,

00:48:24.160 you can

00:48:24.380 see signs

00:48:25.200 of it.

00:48:25.440 Exactly.

00:48:26.040 Right.

00:48:27.480 Maybe

00:48:27.880 some type

00:48:28.980 of association

00:48:29.640 between this

00:48:30.940 kid and

00:48:31.640 us finding

00:48:32.200 IEDs. 0.81

00:48:33.600 So the

00:48:34.260 Taliban 0.97

00:48:34.620 comes into

00:48:35.560 his home

00:48:35.960 while he's

00:48:36.300 sleeping,

00:48:37.040 wraps him

00:48:37.440 up in the

00:48:37.820 middle of

00:48:38.080 the night,

00:48:39.280 takes him

00:48:39.800 to the

00:48:40.180 outside

00:48:40.500 walls of

00:48:41.060 our

00:48:41.240 compound,

00:48:43.120 and this

00:48:43.480 kid's

00:48:43.900 11,

00:48:44.880 12,

00:48:45.420 puts a

00:48:46.820 hand grenade

00:48:47.280 in his

00:48:47.620 hand,

00:48:48.900 pulls the

00:48:49.420 pin,

00:48:50.800 and gives

00:48:51.300 him the

00:48:51.600 ultimatum.

00:48:53.100 Obviously

00:48:53.560 you either

00:48:53.980 throw it, 0.99

00:48:55.260 or this

00:48:57.200 is it

00:48:57.640 for you.

00:48:59.160 And so

00:48:59.420 he's the

00:48:59.760 one that

00:49:00.040 threw the

00:49:00.400 grenade,

00:49:01.280 loving us,

00:49:02.300 wanting that

00:49:02.920 change,

00:49:03.800 trying to

00:49:04.260 help us

00:49:04.820 for his

00:49:05.160 country.

00:49:07.680 So,

00:49:08.300 thanks for

00:49:08.940 letting me

00:49:09.160 go back a

00:49:09.620 little bit,

00:49:10.120 but I

00:49:10.400 think that

00:49:10.820 story puts

00:49:13.500 it into

00:49:13.880 perspective.

00:49:14.460 100%.

00:49:14.900 I think

00:49:15.280 about my

00:49:16.000 oldest son

00:49:16.640 is 11

00:49:17.080 years old.

00:49:18.800 He will

00:49:20.360 likely,

00:49:21.320 a strong

00:49:22.100 likelihood,

00:49:23.020 never

00:49:23.500 have to

00:49:23.960 worry

00:49:24.200 about

00:49:24.540 anything

00:49:25.000 even

00:49:25.360 remotely

00:49:25.920 close to

00:49:26.520 that.

00:49:27.520 That is

00:49:28.040 absolutely

00:49:28.700 insane.

00:49:31.140 Yeah.

00:49:32.020 I don't

00:49:33.140 think a

00:49:33.540 whole lot

00:49:33.820 of people

00:49:34.340 recognize

00:49:36.400 how much

00:49:38.360 injustice

00:49:39.000 there is

00:49:39.440 in the

00:49:39.620 world,

00:49:39.940 because we're

00:49:40.440 in this

00:49:40.960 little bubble

00:49:42.420 of safety

00:49:43.020 and security.

00:49:43.980 The worst

00:49:44.480 thing that's

00:49:44.920 going to

00:49:45.080 happen to

00:49:45.460 somebody

00:49:45.740 today is

00:49:46.420 somebody's

00:49:47.160 going to

00:49:47.420 maybe cut 0.71

00:49:47.920 them off

00:49:48.240 on the

00:49:48.500 road,

00:49:48.800 or the

00:49:50.120 person who

00:49:50.560 takes their

00:49:50.920 order is

00:49:51.300 going to get

00:49:51.560 their order

00:49:51.960 wrong.

00:49:53.880 That's

00:49:54.360 probably the

00:49:54.820 worst that's

00:49:55.140 going to

00:49:55.300 happen for

00:49:55.660 most people

00:49:56.060 today.

00:49:56.620 Yeah.

00:49:57.080 And that's

00:49:57.560 a beautiful,

00:49:58.480 beautiful thing.

00:49:59.040 It is.

00:49:59.320 It's a great

00:49:59.580 thing.

00:49:59.980 Yeah.

00:50:00.260 It's a great

00:50:00.560 thing.

00:50:00.960 But with

00:50:02.080 that,

00:50:02.500 we have an

00:50:02.980 obligation to

00:50:04.080 look outside

00:50:04.940 of those

00:50:05.800 walls of

00:50:07.900 comfort and

00:50:08.600 safety that

00:50:09.240 we do have

00:50:09.980 here and

00:50:11.000 realize that

00:50:11.940 there are

00:50:13.800 tens,

00:50:16.020 hundreds of

00:50:16.700 millions of

00:50:17.300 people a

00:50:17.920 day that

00:50:19.760 wake up and

00:50:20.600 might not

00:50:21.040 know where

00:50:21.680 that next

00:50:22.420 meal is going

00:50:22.880 to come

00:50:23.180 from or

00:50:24.460 if they're

00:50:25.920 going to

00:50:26.100 have their

00:50:26.460 door kicked

00:50:26.960 in the

00:50:27.300 middle of

00:50:27.580 the night

00:50:27.880 and have

00:50:28.200 a hand

00:50:28.520 grenade put

00:50:28.960 in their

00:50:29.160 hand because

00:50:30.500 they want

00:50:32.340 to go to

00:50:32.940 school.

00:50:34.040 Right.

00:50:35.460 What was

00:50:37.520 the repercussions

00:50:38.460 with this

00:50:39.220 kid in this

00:50:40.260 case?

00:50:40.680 How did

00:50:41.340 that play

00:50:41.680 out?

00:50:41.920 This was

00:50:48.360 after you

00:50:49.120 weren't there

00:50:50.140 anymore.

00:50:50.560 I didn't get

00:50:50.900 any follow-up,

00:50:51.620 but I'm

00:50:52.340 assuming he

00:50:53.920 threw it,

00:50:55.420 so hopefully

00:50:57.620 no other

00:50:58.880 repercussions

00:50:59.560 occurred.

00:51:02.240 It's still

00:51:03.620 kind of

00:51:03.960 surreal and

00:51:04.720 unbelievable

00:51:05.380 for me to

00:51:06.140 even tell

00:51:06.660 that story

00:51:07.240 and think

00:51:07.640 about the

00:51:08.640 people over

00:51:09.120 there.

00:51:09.740 It just

00:51:10.320 doesn't seem

00:51:10.760 real, man.

00:51:11.520 Yeah.

00:51:12.600 That's why I'm

00:51:13.100 so thankful

00:51:13.560 and appreciate

00:51:15.060 this opportunity

00:51:16.020 because like

00:51:17.620 we were kind

00:51:18.000 of talking

00:51:18.280 about before

00:51:18.720 this started,

00:51:20.080 to have

00:51:20.720 this podcast

00:51:21.320 and this

00:51:21.740 time to

00:51:22.180 elaborate and

00:51:22.940 really talk

00:51:23.400 about things

00:51:24.120 here and

00:51:25.880 abroad is

00:51:27.860 beneficial for

00:51:29.400 people.

00:51:30.220 I think

00:51:30.780 there's a lot

00:51:31.200 of misconception.

00:51:32.400 I imagine

00:51:34.220 you have

00:51:35.300 criticism and

00:51:36.920 hate and

00:51:37.480 people who

00:51:38.120 put you down 0.94

00:51:39.200 or misconstrue

00:51:40.500 the events

00:51:41.160 and things

00:51:41.660 that went

00:51:41.960 down which

00:51:42.380 I actually

00:51:42.840 want to

00:51:43.080 get into

00:51:43.440 but that's

00:51:45.540 why platforms

00:51:46.840 like this are

00:51:47.440 so important

00:51:48.000 so we can

00:51:48.500 set the record

00:51:49.080 straight and

00:51:49.580 really talk

00:51:50.040 about in

00:51:50.480 depth the

00:51:51.760 real issues,

00:51:53.240 the real stories,

00:51:54.020 the real things

00:51:55.700 that happened.

00:51:56.420 Yeah,

00:51:56.720 absolutely.

00:51:58.160 So you're

00:51:59.400 there with

00:51:59.900 your guys,

00:52:00.680 roughly 60

00:52:01.300 guys,

00:52:01.760 and then you

00:52:02.240 got pulled

00:52:04.040 away into a

00:52:05.320 separate area

00:52:05.980 with your

00:52:06.740 platoon,

00:52:07.360 is that

00:52:07.720 right?

00:52:08.660 Correct.

00:52:09.380 Okay.

00:52:09.940 So Marines,

00:52:12.100 at least at

00:52:12.560 the time,

00:52:13.460 we deployed

00:52:14.000 for seven

00:52:14.540 months.

00:52:16.360 So four

00:52:17.540 months into

00:52:18.120 it when I

00:52:18.540 was injured,

00:52:19.280 we were

00:52:19.840 obviously over

00:52:20.440 the halfway

00:52:20.900 point.

00:52:21.460 Yep.

00:52:22.300 And when

00:52:23.300 you're looking

00:52:23.940 ahead towards

00:52:25.060 the end of

00:52:25.440 the deployment

00:52:26.080 in what's

00:52:27.040 called a

00:52:27.400 rip with

00:52:28.160 another unit

00:52:28.940 who's going

00:52:29.380 to come in

00:52:29.880 relieve you

00:52:30.600 so you can

00:52:31.080 finally go

00:52:31.600 home,

00:52:31.900 you obviously

00:52:35.000 want to leave

00:52:35.800 things better

00:52:36.760 than how you

00:52:37.920 found them.

00:52:39.620 So,

00:52:40.540 you know,

00:52:41.000 for example,

00:52:41.860 say we had

00:52:42.400 a two-square

00:52:43.180 mile area

00:52:46.480 of operation.

00:52:48.180 You know,

00:52:48.920 before that

00:52:50.820 next unit

00:52:51.360 comes,

00:52:52.520 we want to

00:52:53.140 push out and

00:52:53.920 make it a

00:52:54.620 three-square

00:52:55.160 mile radius.

00:52:56.040 Ah,

00:52:56.460 yeah.

00:52:56.960 Therefore,

00:52:57.640 continuing to

00:52:58.660 not only create

00:53:01.000 a greater

00:53:01.500 marine presence

00:53:02.440 where there

00:53:02.980 wasn't one,

00:53:04.320 you know,

00:53:04.580 but continue

00:53:05.100 to push

00:53:05.520 those bad

00:53:06.040 guys out,

00:53:07.180 hopefully leading

00:53:08.380 to more

00:53:08.980 stability within

00:53:09.820 the area.

00:53:10.620 Yeah.

00:53:11.140 So,

00:53:11.800 we had these

00:53:12.420 three villages

00:53:13.180 to the south

00:53:13.940 of our position.

00:53:14.860 Not too far.

00:53:15.940 I think the

00:53:16.400 first one was

00:53:17.320 maybe a

00:53:18.660 click,

00:53:19.160 click and a

00:53:19.680 half.

00:53:21.220 And so,

00:53:21.860 you know,

00:53:24.800 anytime we

00:53:25.540 left our

00:53:26.440 four walls

00:53:27.760 of patrol

00:53:28.320 base

00:53:28.640 Beatley

00:53:29.080 for those

00:53:30.120 first four

00:53:30.640 months,

00:53:31.060 we would

00:53:33.260 get shot

00:53:33.680 at.

00:53:34.120 It was

00:53:34.720 not a

00:53:35.440 matter of,

00:53:36.780 hey,

00:53:37.140 I wonder,

00:53:38.660 you know,

00:53:39.060 if we're

00:53:39.540 going to get

00:53:39.960 shot at or

00:53:40.780 get in a

00:53:41.120 firefight today.

00:53:41.920 It was just

00:53:42.700 a matter of

00:53:43.380 when it was

00:53:43.780 going to

00:53:44.020 occur.

00:53:44.540 Yeah.

00:53:45.720 But,

00:53:46.420 anytime we

00:53:47.260 went south,

00:53:49.400 dude,

00:53:49.860 it was like

00:53:50.620 they turned

00:53:52.960 up the

00:53:53.300 intensity.

00:53:53.940 Really?

00:53:54.340 I mean,

00:53:54.780 it was,

00:53:56.020 we knew,

00:53:57.120 I always rolled

00:53:57.860 out with 800

00:53:58.420 rounds for my

00:53:59.200 saw,

00:53:59.520 but like

00:54:00.520 going down

00:54:01.020 there,

00:54:01.400 I always

00:54:01.740 took like

00:54:02.200 an extra

00:54:02.600 drum or

00:54:03.140 two.

00:54:03.460 Is that

00:54:03.700 right?

00:54:04.060 Yeah,

00:54:04.360 just because

00:54:05.100 not only

00:54:06.040 did it get

00:54:06.820 significantly

00:54:08.300 worse,

00:54:09.840 but the

00:54:12.760 vegetation

00:54:13.220 in some

00:54:14.540 areas on

00:54:15.220 the outskirts

00:54:15.900 of those

00:54:16.300 three villages

00:54:17.020 got thicker.

00:54:18.380 So like at

00:54:18.960 some points,

00:54:19.720 it was crazy.

00:54:20.720 I felt like

00:54:21.260 I was in

00:54:21.940 a firefight

00:54:22.460 in,

00:54:23.100 you know,

00:54:23.680 my backyard

00:54:24.480 in the

00:54:25.000 backwoods

00:54:25.580 here in

00:54:25.900 Gilbert.

00:54:26.480 Really?

00:54:26.960 Yeah,

00:54:27.380 and so,

00:54:28.100 you know,

00:54:29.980 we nicknamed

00:54:30.680 them Shady, 0.89

00:54:32.020 Shadier,

00:54:32.740 and Shadiest.

00:54:33.740 These are the

00:54:34.120 three villages.

00:54:35.000 Correct.

00:54:35.320 Okay,

00:54:35.760 yeah.

00:54:36.120 And so,

00:54:36.760 looking ahead

00:54:38.620 to expand

00:54:39.520 that presence,

00:54:41.640 my squad

00:54:42.520 pushed down

00:54:43.760 about a day

00:54:44.580 and a half

00:54:44.960 before I was

00:54:45.540 injured,

00:54:46.140 November 19th,

00:54:48.060 and we

00:54:49.860 were going

00:54:50.500 to take

00:54:52.040 over another

00:54:52.680 compound

00:54:53.380 and the

00:54:57.280 most simplistic

00:54:57.860 way to put

00:54:58.500 it,

00:54:59.260 we were

00:54:59.560 supposed to

00:54:59.980 take it

00:55:00.300 over

00:55:00.600 and try

00:55:02.520 to survive

00:55:03.360 and last

00:55:04.360 for five

00:55:05.000 days

00:55:05.500 with a

00:55:06.980 backpack

00:55:07.320 full of

00:55:08.060 whatever we

00:55:08.540 could stuff,

00:55:09.740 our weapons

00:55:10.440 and each

00:55:10.820 other.

00:55:11.660 Was five

00:55:12.100 days when

00:55:12.620 reinforcements

00:55:13.460 would come

00:55:13.820 in?

00:55:14.300 Correct.

00:55:14.600 Okay.

00:55:15.360 Well,

00:55:15.720 that was,

00:55:16.140 you know,

00:55:16.400 kind of the

00:55:17.160 plan,

00:55:19.180 if you will.

00:55:20.120 Right.

00:55:21.140 And take it

00:55:21.740 over from the

00:55:22.280 Taliban.

00:55:22.600 So the Taliban 0.92

00:55:23.300 has occupied

00:55:23.980 this compound

00:55:24.600 at this point.

00:55:25.340 They're occupying

00:55:26.160 the village.

00:55:26.900 Okay.

00:55:27.340 There's actually

00:55:27.860 a family in

00:55:28.620 the compound.

00:55:29.480 Ah.

00:55:30.920 Strategically,

00:55:31.780 it wasn't the

00:55:33.300 best,

00:55:33.640 but we kind

00:55:34.060 of work

00:55:34.380 with what

00:55:34.660 we had.

00:55:35.200 Sure.

00:55:35.860 And there

00:55:36.080 was,

00:55:36.640 you know,

00:55:37.400 with the

00:55:38.880 combat

00:55:39.360 and people

00:55:41.280 knowing ahead

00:55:41.960 of time

00:55:42.420 that Marines

00:55:42.920 were coming,

00:55:44.020 you know,

00:55:44.300 we flew over

00:55:45.160 before,

00:55:46.100 and this is

00:55:46.540 way before

00:55:46.940 our deployment,

00:55:47.680 we flew over,

00:55:48.760 let people

00:55:49.340 know the

00:55:50.000 civilian population

00:55:50.940 that we were

00:55:51.540 coming.

00:55:52.600 Hey,

00:55:52.800 we want

00:55:53.100 to give you

00:55:53.400 a better

00:55:53.660 life.

00:55:54.720 You know,

00:55:54.940 we're coming

00:55:55.740 to hopefully

00:55:56.560 get rid of

00:55:57.180 the Taliban.

00:55:58.560 And so it's

00:55:58.960 kind of like

00:55:59.500 you either

00:55:59.820 stay or you

00:56:00.440 went.

00:56:01.660 You know,

00:56:01.860 if you stayed,

00:56:02.880 you kind of

00:56:03.560 unfortunately knew

00:56:04.300 what was coming,

00:56:05.200 but we compensated

00:56:06.420 the family really

00:56:07.260 well.

00:56:07.940 And with that

00:56:08.720 said,

00:56:09.020 you know,

00:56:09.540 there was a lot

00:56:10.220 of other

00:56:10.660 abandoned compounds

00:56:11.700 and all the

00:56:12.620 compounds over

00:56:13.320 there,

00:56:13.660 you can look

00:56:14.700 up on Google

00:56:15.300 Earth.

00:56:15.980 Yeah.

00:56:16.100 they're all

00:56:16.700 pretty much

00:56:17.180 the same.

00:56:18.880 From a

00:56:19.260 bird's eye

00:56:19.680 view,

00:56:20.260 pretty much

00:56:20.660 a perfect

00:56:21.100 square.

00:56:21.880 Right.

00:56:22.440 A little

00:56:22.780 room built

00:56:23.420 in one of

00:56:23.820 the corners

00:56:24.280 where the

00:56:25.040 family sleeps

00:56:25.720 at night.

00:56:26.360 You have

00:56:26.860 all your

00:56:27.120 farm animals

00:56:27.820 out in the

00:56:28.280 courtyard.

00:56:29.160 There's no

00:56:29.760 roof.

00:56:30.120 It's all

00:56:30.420 open.

00:56:31.280 And so they're

00:56:31.720 all pretty

00:56:32.020 much the

00:56:32.380 same.

00:56:32.660 So we

00:56:32.920 essentially

00:56:33.260 just moved

00:56:33.760 them right

00:56:34.060 across the

00:56:34.600 street,

00:56:35.080 helped

00:56:35.300 them move

00:56:35.580 their stuff,

00:56:36.540 compensated

00:56:37.100 them very

00:56:37.680 well.

00:56:38.280 They'd

00:56:38.480 probably be

00:56:39.020 somewhat

00:56:39.340 set for

00:56:39.820 life.

00:56:40.180 And we

00:56:41.700 took it

00:56:42.060 over.

00:56:43.060 Hold on

00:56:43.620 one second

00:56:44.240 on the

00:56:44.520 compensation

00:56:44.940 thing.

00:56:45.760 I mean,

00:56:46.560 like in

00:56:47.880 physical

00:56:48.680 compensation,

00:56:49.960 because they

00:56:51.460 don't have

00:56:52.060 banks or

00:56:52.800 anything,

00:56:53.200 right?

00:56:53.560 Correct.

00:56:54.260 So they

00:56:55.600 run the

00:56:55.920 risk of

00:56:56.380 that being

00:56:57.100 stolen and

00:56:58.120 taken from

00:56:58.600 them.

00:56:58.940 I'm sure

00:56:59.320 they'd become

00:56:59.680 a target at

00:57:00.220 that point.

00:57:01.500 Yeah,

00:57:01.780 man,

00:57:02.020 I never

00:57:02.400 actually even

00:57:03.000 thought about

00:57:03.380 that.

00:57:03.600 I'm just

00:57:03.620 kind of

00:57:03.860 curious.

00:57:04.460 I'm like,

00:57:04.780 whoa,

00:57:05.020 I wonder

00:57:05.280 if they

00:57:05.560 just became,

00:57:06.260 anyways,

00:57:06.860 it's just

00:57:07.500 something I'm

00:57:07.800 thinking about.

00:57:08.600 Well,

00:57:08.760 hopefully,

00:57:09.200 hopefully with

00:57:10.580 your guys

00:57:10.940 being there

00:57:11.560 and your

00:57:11.800 protection a

00:57:12.360 little bit

00:57:12.580 as well.

00:57:13.360 Yeah,

00:57:13.920 and hopefully

00:57:14.460 maybe the

00:57:15.720 Taliban didn't 1.00

00:57:16.820 know that

00:57:17.480 we were

00:57:19.000 compensating

00:57:19.660 people for

00:57:20.500 their loss

00:57:21.340 of their

00:57:21.600 house or

00:57:22.060 their property

00:57:22.720 or whatever.

00:57:23.880 But we were

00:57:24.560 very respectful,

00:57:25.840 did it the

00:57:26.320 right way,

00:57:27.540 and the

00:57:29.220 money for

00:57:29.740 them was

00:57:30.100 very significant.

00:57:31.160 And so

00:57:31.460 they bounced

00:57:34.880 across the

00:57:35.340 street,

00:57:35.700 we took it

00:57:36.180 over,

00:57:37.700 and I

00:57:38.020 mean,

00:57:38.240 I'm talking

00:57:38.660 within,

00:57:39.200 like,

00:57:39.420 the hour

00:57:39.900 we moved

00:57:40.520 into this

00:57:40.920 compound,

00:57:42.120 first grenade

00:57:42.700 attack came.

00:57:44.040 And,

00:57:44.420 you know,

00:57:44.860 people asked

00:57:45.380 me,

00:57:45.740 like,

00:57:46.080 well,

00:57:46.320 like,

00:57:46.540 did y'all

00:57:46.740 not see

00:57:47.180 you while

00:57:47.380 you were

00:57:47.580 going down

00:57:48.020 there?

00:57:48.720 You know,

00:57:49.140 you were

00:57:49.380 so surrounded.

00:57:50.740 And,

00:57:51.220 I mean,

00:57:51.480 it was

00:57:51.720 estimated a

00:57:52.760 significant

00:57:53.380 number of

00:57:54.440 Taliban in 0.94

00:57:55.960 this village

00:57:56.600 and surrounding

00:57:57.980 us.

00:57:58.880 You know,

00:57:59.400 we had maybe

00:58:00.140 11,

00:58:01.660 12 guys at

00:58:02.400 the most with

00:58:03.080 our Navy

00:58:03.580 dock included.

00:58:05.240 And,

00:58:05.540 you know,

00:58:07.200 who knows

00:58:07.580 how true

00:58:07.900 this is,

00:58:08.440 but it

00:58:08.620 was estimated

00:58:09.300 like 75 to

00:58:10.400 100 Taliban 0.90

00:58:11.080 within the

00:58:12.360 area.

00:58:12.860 Right.

00:58:13.260 They all

00:58:13.560 know the

00:58:13.900 area.

00:58:14.300 You're

00:58:14.420 completely

00:58:14.980 surrounded.

00:58:16.200 Yeah,

00:58:16.420 so,

00:58:16.940 kind of like

00:58:17.780 potential

00:58:18.420 suicide

00:58:19.100 mission.

00:58:20.400 And,

00:58:20.920 I knew

00:58:21.640 it was

00:58:22.120 bad,

00:58:22.480 and I

00:58:22.640 didn't put

00:58:22.940 this in the

00:58:23.300 book,

00:58:23.540 but I

00:58:23.760 knew it

00:58:23.980 was bad

00:58:24.520 when my

00:58:25.460 staff

00:58:25.820 sergeant,

00:58:26.920 when we

00:58:27.260 were still

00:58:27.700 at our

00:58:28.180 previous base

00:58:28.980 before we

00:58:29.760 hiked down,

00:58:31.320 he was

00:58:31.620 talking to our

00:58:32.100 company gunny

00:58:33.220 on the

00:58:33.500 sat phone,

00:58:34.460 back behind

00:58:34.980 this little

00:58:35.380 tent,

00:58:36.560 and he was

00:58:37.320 pretty much

00:58:37.720 just telling

00:58:38.100 gunny, 0.94

00:58:38.560 like,

00:58:38.720 hey,

00:58:39.740 this is

00:58:40.660 going to

00:58:40.840 be bad.

00:58:41.480 And this

00:58:41.880 was his

00:58:42.260 ninth combat

00:58:43.040 deployment.

00:58:43.880 Oh,

00:58:44.060 man.

00:58:44.120 And he

00:58:44.480 was in

00:58:44.840 Ramadi,

00:58:45.880 I believe,

00:58:46.400 three times,

00:58:47.120 and he was

00:58:47.540 there,

00:58:48.280 as you know,

00:58:48.920 when it was

00:58:49.220 nicknamed the

00:58:49.820 City of Darkness.

00:58:50.720 Yeah.

00:58:51.440 So,

00:58:51.940 he had been

00:58:52.300 there and

00:58:52.620 done that,

00:58:53.460 and for

00:58:53.780 him,

00:58:55.340 you know,

00:58:55.700 unfortunately,

00:58:56.400 I heard him,

00:58:57.620 because for

00:58:58.100 him to be

00:58:59.060 wary,

00:58:59.780 I mean,

00:59:00.460 this dude was,

00:59:01.880 he was a G.

00:59:02.520 I mean,

00:59:02.920 he would,

00:59:04.220 you know,

00:59:04.560 just for fun

00:59:05.580 during the day,

00:59:06.360 as a staff

00:59:07.040 sergeant,

00:59:07.620 who probably

00:59:08.160 should stay

00:59:08.840 inside radio

00:59:10.360 communication,

00:59:11.280 talking with

00:59:11.740 higher ups,

00:59:11.920 be the leader,

00:59:12.580 yeah,

00:59:12.940 probably not go

00:59:13.900 out,

00:59:14.600 he'd be like,

00:59:15.060 oh,

00:59:15.260 yeah,

00:59:15.380 I'm going to

00:59:15.660 roll with

00:59:15.980 y'all today.

00:59:16.900 It's like,

00:59:17.240 all right,

00:59:17.520 well,

00:59:17.660 we're going to

00:59:18.040 this area,

00:59:18.420 it's probably

00:59:18.700 going to be

00:59:18.940 bad.

00:59:19.200 He's like,

00:59:19.600 yeah,

00:59:19.920 like,

00:59:20.400 F it,

00:59:20.740 let's do it.

00:59:21.960 Like,

00:59:22.460 awesome Marine,

00:59:23.380 awesome leader.

00:59:24.260 So,

00:59:24.560 for me to

00:59:25.180 hear him say,

00:59:25.980 like,

00:59:26.220 hey,

00:59:28.080 you know,

00:59:28.360 we need to

00:59:29.260 kind of

00:59:30.480 rethink this

00:59:31.420 and,

00:59:32.180 you know,

00:59:32.340 this is going

00:59:32.740 to be a bad

00:59:33.280 one.

00:59:33.960 I knew it was

00:59:34.480 going to be

00:59:34.760 bad,

00:59:35.240 obviously we

00:59:35.760 didn't know

00:59:36.100 how bad,

00:59:37.280 but,

00:59:37.620 yeah,

00:59:38.880 you know,

00:59:39.520 as far as

00:59:40.340 getting attacked,

00:59:41.940 the second we

00:59:42.620 moved in there,

00:59:44.380 you know,

00:59:44.680 because everything's

00:59:45.680 so unconventional,

00:59:46.720 no one's wearing

00:59:47.300 uniforms,

00:59:48.500 everyone has

00:59:49.220 little burner,

00:59:50.400 you know,

00:59:50.740 prepaid cell phones,

00:59:52.040 so the second we

00:59:53.380 walk out of our 0.95

00:59:54.120 base,

00:59:54.880 every step of the

00:59:55.860 way down,

00:59:56.920 there's a scout,

00:59:58.360 there's someone

00:59:58.880 calling down to

01:00:00.540 Shady,

01:00:01.200 Shady,

01:00:01.740 or his boys

01:00:02.400 down there,

01:00:02.960 hey,

01:00:03.700 Marines are

01:00:04.120 headed your

01:00:04.560 way.

01:00:05.280 So,

01:00:05.580 when we walked

01:00:06.000 in this compound,

01:00:07.220 obviously they

01:00:07.820 know where we

01:00:08.300 are,

01:00:08.800 we're not going

01:00:09.500 anywhere,

01:00:10.360 we're not scared

01:00:11.380 of them,

01:00:11.660 we just don't

01:00:12.080 know where they

01:00:12.480 are.

01:00:12.800 Yeah.

01:00:13.280 And so,

01:00:14.620 instantly almost,

01:00:15.880 grenades,

01:00:16.820 lobbing grenades

01:00:17.540 over the wall

01:00:18.180 of the compound,

01:00:19.160 and it was so

01:00:20.120 bizarre because,

01:00:21.740 you know,

01:00:22.040 where we were,

01:00:22.860 a lot of people,

01:00:23.480 I think,

01:00:23.820 think of Afghanistan

01:00:24.580 as mountains,

01:00:26.320 arid,

01:00:26.840 dry,

01:00:27.280 rugged,

01:00:27.540 terrain.

01:00:28.160 Yeah.

01:00:29.240 You know,

01:00:29.580 but kind of

01:00:30.320 when we went

01:00:31.380 into the country,

01:00:32.760 for the most part,

01:00:33.880 I think the Army

01:00:34.580 took kind of the

01:00:35.500 northern part of

01:00:36.060 the country,

01:00:37.100 Marines focused

01:00:38.100 more on the

01:00:38.680 south.

01:00:39.480 So,

01:00:40.060 where we were

01:00:40.960 was very lush

01:00:42.600 agricultural farmland.

01:00:44.360 I mean,

01:00:44.780 every day,

01:00:45.740 I had my machine

01:00:46.860 gun over my head

01:00:47.740 wading through

01:00:48.600 sewage canals

01:00:49.820 and waterways.

01:00:50.980 Oh, wow, yeah.

01:00:51.480 You know,

01:00:51.640 they obviously

01:00:52.120 can't IED

01:00:52.900 or booby trap

01:00:53.700 those.

01:00:54.700 And so,

01:00:55.360 you know,

01:00:56.160 it was very like,

01:00:58.020 almost like a

01:00:58.680 mild Vietnam.

01:00:59.980 Yeah.

01:01:00.180 And so,

01:01:01.480 with that said,

01:01:05.640 you know,

01:01:05.860 Afghanistan,

01:01:06.520 we're fighting

01:01:06.980 tree line to

01:01:07.700 tree line

01:01:08.360 and across

01:01:08.940 agricultural fields

01:01:10.260 and through

01:01:10.640 people's backyards,

01:01:11.760 which most of the

01:01:13.240 time,

01:01:14.100 that fighting

01:01:16.340 environment,

01:01:17.580 unlike Iraq, 0.99

01:01:18.600 which is so urban

01:01:19.520 and more house to

01:01:20.540 house and street

01:01:21.260 to street,

01:01:22.460 to throw hand

01:01:23.340 grenades,

01:01:23.700 you have to get

01:01:24.200 in pretty close

01:01:24.920 proximity of what

01:01:25.980 you can throw.

01:01:26.500 And so,

01:01:28.080 when the first

01:01:28.660 grenade landed,

01:01:30.840 I was outside

01:01:31.580 digging a,

01:01:32.420 filling sandbags

01:01:34.080 and at the same

01:01:36.120 time digging a

01:01:36.920 burn pit because

01:01:37.820 there's no

01:01:38.580 infrastructure.

01:01:39.400 We just have to

01:01:39.940 burn anything we

01:01:40.940 go through.

01:01:41.700 Yeah.

01:01:42.060 You know,

01:01:42.720 human waste to

01:01:44.220 MRE boxes to

01:01:45.960 everything.

01:01:46.980 So,

01:01:47.520 we're digging this

01:01:48.020 burn pit,

01:01:48.580 filling sandbags

01:01:49.620 and just for people

01:01:51.360 listening,

01:01:52.220 we fill sandbags

01:01:53.440 and we build them

01:01:54.580 up in circles

01:01:55.520 or structures

01:01:57.060 on top of

01:01:57.880 roofs.

01:01:58.740 So,

01:01:58.920 whoever's on

01:01:59.740 a lookout

01:02:00.780 position,

01:02:01.580 what we call

01:02:02.440 a post position,

01:02:04.340 essentially just

01:02:05.120 on this elevated

01:02:06.340 position with your

01:02:07.820 gear on and your

01:02:08.740 weapon,

01:02:10.140 looking out for

01:02:11.040 an attack,

01:02:11.720 bad guys,

01:02:12.440 making sure the

01:02:13.160 Marines that are

01:02:13.860 either eating,

01:02:14.720 sleeping,

01:02:15.280 cleaning their

01:02:15.740 weapons,

01:02:16.320 relaxing within

01:02:17.220 the compound

01:02:18.060 who are not on

01:02:19.020 lookout are safe.

01:02:21.040 Right.

01:02:22.280 And so,

01:02:23.520 we're filling

01:02:24.020 these sandbags

01:02:24.900 and we hear

01:02:25.620 something and

01:02:26.900 somebody said,

01:02:27.840 who's throwing

01:02:28.380 rocks?

01:02:29.560 And then,

01:02:30.100 boom,

01:02:30.620 first grenade

01:02:31.140 goes off.

01:02:32.440 And dude,

01:02:32.820 for the next

01:02:33.380 30 hours until

01:02:34.580 I was injured

01:02:35.260 or,

01:02:35.940 it might not be

01:02:36.600 exactly 30 hours

01:02:37.700 but roughly

01:02:38.200 day and a half,

01:02:39.620 it was either

01:02:40.280 grenades being

01:02:41.020 lobbed over the

01:02:41.740 wall or,

01:02:43.380 you know,

01:02:44.060 a non-stop

01:02:45.140 just,

01:02:45.960 you know,

01:02:47.300 harassing,

01:02:48.180 AK-47 fire

01:02:49.580 and small arms

01:02:50.480 attack.

01:02:51.280 Jeez.

01:02:51.720 Were you able

01:02:53.080 to engage

01:02:54.020 these guys

01:02:54.760 at all

01:02:55.280 throughout that

01:02:56.840 30-hour time

01:02:57.620 frame?

01:02:58.640 Or were they

01:02:59.200 so far away

01:03:00.160 and knew the

01:03:01.440 terrain and

01:03:01.900 everything so

01:03:02.400 well that it

01:03:02.880 was just even

01:03:03.440 difficult to

01:03:04.080 engage them?

01:03:05.440 More of the

01:03:06.060 latter.

01:03:06.780 And,

01:03:07.440 you know,

01:03:07.720 we were in

01:03:08.240 this village

01:03:08.940 and what the

01:03:10.020 Taliban will 1.00

01:03:10.660 do is

01:03:11.140 they'll bust

01:03:12.480 out,

01:03:14.840 like,

01:03:15.920 crawl through

01:03:16.500 size holes

01:03:17.500 in walls

01:03:18.620 within

01:03:19.080 compounds

01:03:19.780 so they

01:03:21.340 can run

01:03:22.000 through

01:03:22.480 and never

01:03:24.460 show themselves

01:03:25.200 and they

01:03:26.060 punch out

01:03:26.520 little barrel

01:03:27.100 holes

01:03:27.600 and so,

01:03:28.880 you know,

01:03:29.360 very cowardly

01:03:30.480 punch out

01:03:31.700 these holes,

01:03:32.680 never expose

01:03:33.400 themselves by

01:03:34.120 running through

01:03:34.660 compound walls

01:03:35.700 and,

01:03:37.040 you know,

01:03:37.300 more harassment

01:03:38.340 because a lot

01:03:39.100 of it wasn't

01:03:39.480 accurate but,

01:03:40.780 you know,

01:03:41.000 essentially

01:03:41.400 protecting

01:03:42.280 themselves and

01:03:43.340 being able to

01:03:43.940 shoot at us

01:03:45.300 without ever

01:03:46.540 exposing themselves.

01:03:47.860 But isn't,

01:03:48.280 I mean,

01:03:49.280 I mean,

01:03:49.540 that's what we

01:03:50.000 would attempt

01:03:51.160 to do too,

01:03:51.860 right?

01:03:52.480 Yeah.

01:03:53.420 You know,

01:03:53.740 it's like,

01:03:54.460 give yourself

01:03:54.980 the best

01:03:55.440 advantages

01:03:55.880 possible.

01:03:56.640 Like,

01:03:56.940 it's hard to

01:03:57.760 say because

01:03:58.180 it's the enemy,

01:03:58.980 you know,

01:03:59.180 but it's like,

01:03:59.680 well,

01:03:59.800 we would do

01:04:00.220 that same

01:04:00.560 thing as well.

01:04:01.440 Yeah,

01:04:01.740 very true,

01:04:02.580 but,

01:04:03.420 you know,

01:04:05.960 to not have

01:04:06.600 a uniform on

01:04:07.480 and do that

01:04:08.200 and then you

01:04:08.860 can literally

01:04:09.300 put down your

01:04:09.860 weapon after

01:04:10.840 you've killed

01:04:11.300 two Marines

01:04:11.980 and walk out

01:04:13.060 of this house

01:04:13.600 and be like,

01:04:14.420 oh no,

01:04:15.300 there's fights

01:04:15.800 going on.

01:04:16.560 That's true,

01:04:17.020 that's it,

01:04:17.420 I agree with that.

01:04:18.280 And then even

01:04:18.860 using civilian

01:04:19.820 population as

01:04:21.280 cover,

01:04:22.460 like,

01:04:22.900 that to me,

01:04:23.840 I 100% agree

01:04:24.900 with you.

01:04:25.080 Exactly,

01:04:25.380 you know,

01:04:26.320 during firefights,

01:04:27.460 a little side

01:04:29.300 of the story,

01:04:29.660 but during

01:04:29.900 firefights,

01:04:31.780 you know,

01:04:32.100 I,

01:04:32.560 one time

01:04:33.440 fighting with

01:04:34.240 the Eastern

01:04:34.580 Village,

01:04:35.040 which was a

01:04:35.420 very bad

01:04:35.880 spot,

01:04:37.380 you know,

01:04:38.580 I kept

01:04:39.020 seeing,

01:04:39.700 I kept,

01:04:40.440 you know,

01:04:40.640 we kept

01:04:40.900 getting rounds

01:04:41.400 coming in,

01:04:41.980 kept getting

01:04:42.300 shot at,

01:04:42.740 shot at,

01:04:43.440 and finally

01:04:44.620 I saw

01:04:45.160 where the

01:04:45.820 dust was

01:04:46.240 kicking up

01:04:47.340 from the

01:04:48.040 rifle,

01:04:48.680 AK-47,

01:04:50.340 and so

01:04:50.840 finally,

01:04:51.400 you know,

01:04:51.620 I had this

01:04:52.220 doorway this

01:04:52.800 guy was in,

01:04:53.620 I was looking

01:04:54.120 through my

01:04:54.520 ACOG,

01:04:55.080 I had my

01:04:55.520 saw ready

01:04:56.160 to go,

01:04:57.120 obviously

01:04:57.640 wanting to

01:04:58.100 protect the

01:04:58.560 Marines around

01:04:59.080 me,

01:04:59.880 you know,

01:05:00.520 I think,

01:05:01.720 you know,

01:05:02.180 war and

01:05:02.980 hurting another

01:05:03.720 human being is

01:05:04.440 an absolute

01:05:04.840 last resort,

01:05:06.340 but if you're

01:05:06.780 going to sit

01:05:07.080 there and

01:05:07.340 continuously

01:05:07.840 shoot at

01:05:08.440 us,

01:05:09.060 something needs

01:05:09.580 to be done.

01:05:09.980 So I'm

01:05:11.140 looking at

01:05:11.460 this doorway

01:05:12.060 and,

01:05:13.760 you know,

01:05:14.180 thank God

01:05:14.860 I had

01:05:15.220 trigger

01:05:15.520 discipline

01:05:16.020 and I

01:05:17.000 didn't just,

01:05:17.660 you know,

01:05:18.000 let him fly.

01:05:19.840 Dude throws

01:05:20.340 his wife,

01:05:21.140 or maybe not

01:05:21.800 his wife,

01:05:22.260 but a female 1.00

01:05:22.780 on the doorway.

01:05:24.160 Therefore,

01:05:24.780 we maybe

01:05:25.280 shoot her, 1.00

01:05:27.320 he gets to

01:05:28.000 complain about

01:05:28.560 the Marines,

01:05:29.280 we get in

01:05:29.760 trouble,

01:05:30.300 we might not

01:05:30.880 patrol for a

01:05:31.640 few days,

01:05:32.360 they regroup

01:05:33.020 their operations,

01:05:34.100 and he doesn't

01:05:34.600 care about her

01:05:35.300 or what happened

01:05:35.960 to her.

01:05:36.280 Right.

01:05:36.860 So you're

01:05:37.440 exactly right,

01:05:38.120 that's a good

01:05:38.560 point.

01:05:39.520 But,

01:05:39.780 yeah,

01:05:40.660 man,

01:05:41.040 we,

01:05:42.140 and,

01:05:42.640 you know,

01:05:42.780 I think I

01:05:43.260 would like to

01:05:43.840 say,

01:05:44.440 you know,

01:05:44.880 Marines are

01:05:45.360 so prepared,

01:05:47.200 you know,

01:05:48.220 like I said,

01:05:49.000 we weren't

01:05:49.320 scared,

01:05:50.060 it was just

01:05:50.520 I think we

01:05:51.180 went down

01:05:51.780 there with

01:05:55.300 an inadequate

01:05:56.100 number of

01:05:56.900 Marines and

01:05:58.480 external support.

01:06:00.700 Right.

01:06:01.440 Sounds like it.

01:06:02.140 And there was

01:06:02.600 just so many

01:06:04.360 bad guys,

01:06:05.560 and,

01:06:06.420 you know,

01:06:06.620 the walls

01:06:07.480 of these

01:06:07.720 compounds are

01:06:08.900 10,

01:06:10.200 12,

01:06:11.140 maybe 15

01:06:12.240 feet high.

01:06:14.060 And so,

01:06:15.480 you know,

01:06:15.780 we were so

01:06:16.260 limited,

01:06:16.900 we couldn't

01:06:17.380 really even

01:06:17.900 send out

01:06:18.720 a for real

01:06:20.380 official full

01:06:21.520 12-man patrol

01:06:22.500 because that's

01:06:22.940 all we had.

01:06:23.600 We wouldn't have

01:06:23.920 been able to

01:06:24.380 man the base.

01:06:25.240 Right.

01:06:25.660 So,

01:06:26.180 you know,

01:06:26.420 we would send

01:06:26.880 out like

01:06:27.540 a fire team,

01:06:29.940 four Marines

01:06:30.420 or so,

01:06:31.080 just in the

01:06:31.760 immediate

01:06:32.100 perimeter.

01:06:33.620 But,

01:06:33.900 you know,

01:06:34.280 our mission

01:06:34.820 wasn't to go

01:06:35.440 down there

01:06:36.320 and secure

01:06:36.760 the whole

01:06:37.060 village.

01:06:37.860 We were just

01:06:38.440 there to

01:06:38.980 set our foot

01:06:40.100 in the ground,

01:06:40.600 establish that

01:06:41.300 presence,

01:06:42.580 and try to

01:06:43.560 survive and

01:06:44.960 take care of

01:06:45.520 each other

01:06:46.000 until that

01:06:46.800 help arrived.

01:06:48.380 Were you

01:06:48.660 prepared to

01:06:51.220 die at that

01:06:51.720 point?

01:06:52.140 Like,

01:06:52.260 had you,

01:06:53.220 I don't want

01:06:54.080 to say the

01:06:54.400 word resigned

01:06:55.240 because obviously

01:06:56.080 you're still

01:06:56.500 fighting,

01:06:57.340 but had you

01:06:57.920 just accepted

01:06:58.720 that that may

01:06:59.620 be the fate

01:07:00.200 of you and

01:07:00.880 your guys?

01:07:01.720 Yes.

01:07:01.820 I think

01:07:06.180 if I

01:07:06.520 would have

01:07:07.160 day one

01:07:08.580 been inserted

01:07:09.260 into that

01:07:10.280 that

01:07:11.380 scenario,

01:07:12.860 I think

01:07:21.320 you,

01:07:22.140 as a

01:07:22.480 young Marine

01:07:23.080 and all

01:07:23.620 the training

01:07:24.120 and everything

01:07:24.540 you've been

01:07:25.040 through,

01:07:26.780 going into

01:07:27.760 a deployment

01:07:28.180 like that,

01:07:28.680 you obviously

01:07:29.020 don't know

01:07:29.400 what to

01:07:29.660 expect.

01:07:30.240 I think

01:07:32.700 maybe if

01:07:33.300 you really

01:07:34.000 looked inside

01:07:34.820 yourself,

01:07:36.440 maybe you

01:07:38.800 were willing

01:07:39.740 accepting of

01:07:43.020 dying,

01:07:43.900 or maybe

01:07:44.620 you weren't,

01:07:45.500 but after

01:07:45.980 four months

01:07:46.620 of being

01:07:46.980 there,

01:07:48.060 and every

01:07:48.660 single night

01:07:49.720 laying my

01:07:50.280 head down

01:07:50.700 on my

01:07:51.040 pillow and

01:07:51.660 thinking,

01:07:53.140 man,

01:07:53.520 this is,

01:07:54.700 there's a

01:07:55.060 good chance

01:07:55.580 this is the

01:07:56.080 last night

01:07:56.700 I'm ever

01:07:57.120 going to lay

01:07:57.460 my head

01:07:57.840 down and

01:07:58.460 go to

01:07:58.940 sleep on

01:07:59.360 this earth,

01:08:00.240 you know,

01:08:01.060 once you

01:08:01.580 have day

01:08:02.060 in and

01:08:02.560 day out,

01:08:03.040 every single

01:08:03.660 day of

01:08:04.100 that,

01:08:05.100 I think

01:08:07.180 you just

01:08:07.560 become

01:08:08.240 more

01:08:10.520 accepting

01:08:11.180 of

01:08:12.140 the

01:08:17.020 potential

01:08:17.440 consequences.

01:08:18.720 Right.

01:08:19.580 And,

01:08:20.160 you know,

01:08:20.420 I think

01:08:20.720 with the

01:08:21.060 training,

01:08:21.720 the history

01:08:22.120 we get

01:08:22.480 taught,

01:08:22.840 and all

01:08:23.020 of these

01:08:23.320 things,

01:08:25.080 I think

01:08:26.220 in a

01:08:26.500 good way,

01:08:27.660 you

01:08:28.160 kind of

01:08:29.400 feel

01:08:29.620 invincible

01:08:30.140 up until

01:08:31.020 the point

01:08:31.400 something

01:08:31.680 does

01:08:31.960 happen.

01:08:33.360 And,

01:08:33.820 you know,

01:08:34.080 you're in

01:08:34.540 such a

01:08:35.080 surreal

01:08:35.620 environment.

01:08:36.500 It's like,

01:08:37.520 you know,

01:08:38.000 yesterday I

01:08:39.140 saw my

01:08:39.620 buddy get

01:08:40.220 shot in the

01:08:40.760 leg.

01:08:41.560 Thankfully he

01:08:42.200 made it.

01:08:43.360 You know,

01:08:43.920 November 9th,

01:08:45.140 one of my

01:08:45.560 worst days,

01:08:46.240 the worst day

01:08:46.860 on my

01:08:47.100 deployment,

01:08:48.320 like my

01:08:48.820 squad leader

01:08:49.540 who I was

01:08:50.320 on patrol

01:08:50.780 with,

01:08:52.260 stepped on

01:08:52.820 IED,

01:08:54.000 immediate

01:08:54.680 double

01:08:55.480 amputee.

01:08:56.940 Six hours

01:08:57.760 later,

01:08:58.480 eight hours

01:08:58.880 later that

01:08:59.380 night,

01:09:00.260 one of my

01:09:00.660 best friends,

01:09:01.260 Dakota Hughes,

01:09:02.260 middle of the

01:09:02.800 night,

01:09:03.600 stepped on a

01:09:04.300 massive IED,

01:09:05.340 that rock-dark

01:09:05.960 compound almost

01:09:06.880 a mile away

01:09:07.580 that I was

01:09:08.380 sitting in on

01:09:09.100 radio watch

01:09:09.960 listening to

01:09:10.860 radio transmission

01:09:12.640 of them trying

01:09:13.340 to find

01:09:14.140 pieces and

01:09:16.120 parts of his

01:09:16.700 body.

01:09:17.860 So with

01:09:18.300 things like

01:09:18.720 that happening,

01:09:19.780 it's kind of

01:09:20.500 like,

01:09:21.060 yes,

01:09:21.320 I know I'm

01:09:21.820 here.

01:09:22.900 Yes,

01:09:23.180 I know the

01:09:23.600 consequences.

01:09:25.380 But until

01:09:26.180 you take that

01:09:28.080 round or you

01:09:29.000 step on that

01:09:29.600 IED or

01:09:30.140 something happens

01:09:31.060 directly to

01:09:32.040 you,

01:09:32.920 it's not that

01:09:33.640 you think,

01:09:34.280 oh,

01:09:34.760 this is not

01:09:35.200 going to

01:09:35.400 happen to

01:09:35.820 me.

01:09:36.480 It's just,

01:09:37.400 it's almost

01:09:38.320 too crazy

01:09:40.120 and surreal

01:09:40.720 to comprehend.

01:09:42.620 I imagine

01:09:43.000 the mind,

01:09:44.120 this is a

01:09:45.460 defense mechanism

01:09:46.440 in a way,

01:09:46.940 because if

01:09:47.760 that's all

01:09:49.100 you thought

01:09:49.660 about,

01:09:50.420 you wouldn't

01:09:50.980 be able to

01:09:51.460 do your

01:09:51.780 job.

01:09:52.420 Absolutely.

01:09:53.240 It would

01:09:53.440 be mentally 0.57

01:09:54.200 crippling. 0.99

01:09:55.960 You're in a

01:09:56.720 horrific,

01:09:57.560 horrific

01:09:58.200 environment.

01:09:59.600 Your brothers

01:10:00.140 are being

01:10:01.080 injured and

01:10:01.740 being killed

01:10:02.300 around you.

01:10:03.800 And if

01:10:04.140 that's what

01:10:05.660 you're thinking

01:10:06.100 about,

01:10:07.060 forget about

01:10:07.900 the mission.

01:10:08.760 You're

01:10:08.920 useless at

01:10:10.640 that point.

01:10:11.220 Yeah,

01:10:11.640 absolutely.

01:10:13.500 But yeah,

01:10:14.300 defense mechanism,

01:10:15.160 that's a great

01:10:15.840 way to think

01:10:16.640 about it and

01:10:17.120 look at it.

01:10:17.720 another

01:10:19.900 example of

01:10:20.580 just how

01:10:20.940 crazy it

01:10:21.880 is,

01:10:23.180 which is a

01:10:23.900 chapter in

01:10:24.280 the book,

01:10:24.700 but I talk

01:10:25.480 about my

01:10:25.800 21st birthday

01:10:26.620 and it was

01:10:27.580 the worst

01:10:27.920 firefighter of

01:10:28.540 our whole

01:10:28.820 deployment.

01:10:30.400 And I

01:10:31.840 just remember

01:10:32.580 hours and

01:10:34.360 hours of

01:10:35.100 fighting and

01:10:35.720 it was when

01:10:36.700 we got caught

01:10:37.420 up in the

01:10:37.860 woods fighting

01:10:39.200 through those

01:10:40.220 tree lines.

01:10:40.920 and I

01:10:44.000 remember we

01:10:44.540 were crawling

01:10:45.040 through a

01:10:45.580 field,

01:10:46.440 you know,

01:10:46.600 straight up

01:10:47.280 low crawling

01:10:48.120 on our

01:10:48.760 chest and

01:10:49.320 knees.

01:10:49.920 I had my

01:10:50.940 saw over

01:10:51.800 my shoulder

01:10:52.420 with the

01:10:52.800 barrel up

01:10:53.440 to not get

01:10:54.020 it dirty.

01:10:56.180 Grabbing this

01:10:57.020 arm,

01:10:57.660 pulling myself

01:10:58.280 through this

01:10:58.740 field.

01:10:59.860 And on the

01:11:01.000 sides of all

01:11:01.580 their agricultural

01:11:02.260 fields,

01:11:02.940 there's what's

01:11:03.840 known as

01:11:04.200 goat paths.

01:11:05.120 And it's

01:11:06.200 paths that

01:11:06.740 the local

01:11:07.140 populations

01:11:07.900 take their

01:11:09.660 farm animals

01:11:10.340 on.

01:11:11.140 Therefore,

01:11:11.800 you don't have

01:11:12.180 to walk

01:11:12.480 straight through

01:11:12.880 the middle

01:11:13.180 of your field

01:11:13.700 potentially damaging

01:11:14.720 your crops.

01:11:15.980 So these

01:11:16.320 paths, I

01:11:17.020 mean,

01:11:17.500 crisscross the

01:11:19.060 entire landscape

01:11:20.320 over there.

01:11:22.020 So a lot of

01:11:22.500 times that

01:11:22.920 creates a

01:11:23.500 defilade,

01:11:24.160 which is,

01:11:24.840 you know,

01:11:25.140 for people

01:11:25.620 listening,

01:11:26.760 if there is,

01:11:27.740 you know,

01:11:29.240 a berm or

01:11:30.040 a hill and

01:11:31.820 you're on one

01:11:32.460 side of it,

01:11:34.340 if whatever

01:11:35.320 you're shooting

01:11:35.880 at is on

01:11:37.280 the other

01:11:37.620 side and

01:11:38.400 lower than

01:11:39.020 that embankment,

01:11:39.800 unless you're

01:11:41.400 miles away

01:11:42.180 and you

01:11:42.480 somehow curve

01:11:43.460 your round

01:11:44.040 down,

01:11:44.460 you're not

01:11:44.780 going to see

01:11:45.200 them and

01:11:45.400 you can't

01:11:45.800 hit them.

01:11:46.540 So we were

01:11:47.040 in this

01:11:47.280 defilade

01:11:47.800 crawling through

01:11:48.340 this field

01:11:49.000 and I just

01:11:50.700 had this

01:11:52.000 like crazy

01:11:53.140 moment where

01:11:53.900 I was like,

01:11:55.140 happy birthday

01:11:55.860 to me.

01:11:56.900 You know,

01:11:57.300 I don't know

01:11:57.920 if I'm ever

01:11:58.520 going to get

01:11:58.940 to enjoy my

01:12:00.140 first legal

01:12:01.060 beer,

01:12:01.760 you know.

01:12:02.100 but even

01:12:03.660 then my

01:12:04.300 emotion

01:12:04.780 didn't change

01:12:06.260 from having

01:12:06.800 that thought

01:12:07.440 to before

01:12:08.200 I had that

01:12:08.760 thought or

01:12:09.220 after.

01:12:10.180 It was just

01:12:10.560 kind of like,

01:12:11.880 oh,

01:12:12.260 that's an

01:12:13.060 interesting fact.

01:12:14.500 You know,

01:12:14.840 it's so,

01:12:15.900 it's hard to

01:12:17.220 explain but I

01:12:18.640 think just the

01:12:19.320 best way to

01:12:19.820 put it is

01:12:20.520 it's so surreal

01:12:22.060 and the things

01:12:23.040 that are

01:12:24.040 happening to

01:12:24.900 the people

01:12:25.260 around you

01:12:25.820 are so surreal

01:12:26.700 and just

01:12:28.180 take that

01:12:28.800 away,

01:12:29.920 how you see

01:12:30.780 the local

01:12:31.280 population

01:12:32.020 and how

01:12:32.440 those people

01:12:32.980 live and

01:12:33.620 have lived

01:12:34.140 forever and

01:12:34.900 hopefully not

01:12:36.340 but maybe

01:12:36.780 we'll continue

01:12:37.520 living like

01:12:38.140 that.

01:12:38.860 It's all

01:12:39.580 just so

01:12:41.200 crazy.

01:12:42.400 Yeah.

01:12:42.640 So crazy.

01:12:43.580 Yeah.

01:12:43.880 I mean,

01:12:44.140 it seems like

01:12:44.660 there's definitely

01:12:45.240 a level of

01:12:45.800 detachment in

01:12:46.460 that situation

01:12:47.160 so that you

01:12:47.600 can still

01:12:47.900 perform and

01:12:48.600 do what you

01:12:48.960 need to do.

01:12:49.520 Yes.

01:12:49.740 Yeah.

01:12:50.400 So,

01:12:50.980 so take me

01:12:51.680 then to the

01:12:52.700 day that you

01:12:53.320 got injured.

01:12:54.520 So,

01:12:55.200 you're in the

01:12:55.820 in the

01:12:56.660 compound.

01:12:57.540 Correct.

01:12:58.140 And you

01:12:58.840 are in a

01:12:59.440 in a,

01:13:00.260 not a

01:13:00.560 patrol situation

01:13:01.240 but a

01:13:01.860 post position.

01:13:03.120 Is that

01:13:03.300 right?

01:13:03.660 Correct.

01:13:04.180 Myself and

01:13:05.340 a fellow

01:13:05.720 Marine best

01:13:06.720 friend,

01:13:07.080 one of the

01:13:07.360 most amazing

01:13:08.000 Marines I've

01:13:08.540 ever had

01:13:09.100 the privilege

01:13:10.460 of serving

01:13:11.000 with,

01:13:11.580 Lance Corporal

01:13:12.340 Nick

01:13:12.720 Euphrasio.

01:13:14.640 We were

01:13:15.580 because we

01:13:18.680 were on the

01:13:19.040 same roof

01:13:19.520 together inside

01:13:20.820 the same

01:13:21.600 enclosed

01:13:22.940 circle

01:13:23.400 sandbag

01:13:23.980 position

01:13:24.440 together

01:13:24.940 because the

01:13:26.060 day before

01:13:26.860 when I was

01:13:27.780 on post

01:13:28.500 on the

01:13:29.360 other roof

01:13:30.040 so those

01:13:30.900 two roofs

01:13:31.420 in this

01:13:32.140 compound.

01:13:32.980 One was

01:13:33.600 the roof

01:13:34.140 above the

01:13:35.520 room where

01:13:35.920 the family

01:13:36.400 slept.

01:13:37.060 Okay.

01:13:37.240 It was in

01:13:37.700 one corner.

01:13:38.380 All right.

01:13:38.880 The other

01:13:39.320 corner,

01:13:40.280 which most

01:13:41.240 of the

01:13:41.500 compounds

01:13:41.920 over there

01:13:42.360 have,

01:13:43.320 it'll have

01:13:43.800 a little

01:13:44.100 room and

01:13:45.940 that's where

01:13:46.640 after they

01:13:47.280 harvest their

01:13:48.340 crops slash

01:13:49.260 drugs from

01:13:49.900 the field,

01:13:50.620 they shove

01:13:52.000 them all in

01:13:52.660 there and

01:13:53.080 kind of let

01:13:53.680 them dry

01:13:54.100 out before

01:13:54.740 they can

01:13:55.120 process and

01:13:55.860 do whatever

01:13:56.300 they do

01:13:57.220 with them.

01:13:57.560 I was on

01:13:59.380 that roof

01:13:59.960 the day

01:14:00.440 before and

01:14:01.560 I was

01:14:02.540 building this

01:14:03.900 sandbag

01:14:04.440 position so

01:14:05.320 we were

01:14:05.980 going to

01:14:06.200 have two

01:14:06.640 roofs,

01:14:07.700 a circle

01:14:08.100 of sandbags

01:14:08.760 on each

01:14:09.180 one,

01:14:10.260 that way

01:14:10.940 obviously

01:14:11.540 two sets

01:14:12.280 of eyes

01:14:13.260 and two

01:14:13.880 marines

01:14:14.320 looking,

01:14:16.660 almost covering

01:14:17.540 the full

01:14:18.300 field of

01:14:18.820 visual around

01:14:19.700 this compound.

01:14:21.320 I was on

01:14:22.280 that post,

01:14:22.900 I was building

01:14:23.480 up the

01:14:23.860 sandbags and

01:14:25.340 I started

01:14:26.100 getting shot

01:14:26.920 at by a

01:14:27.420 sniper.

01:14:28.560 Now usually

01:14:29.200 one, we

01:14:31.320 rarely saw

01:14:32.240 snipers and

01:14:33.540 two, with

01:14:34.620 not only how

01:14:35.340 old and

01:14:35.960 probably beat

01:14:36.660 up their

01:14:36.940 weapons are,

01:14:38.320 they were not

01:14:39.360 good marksmen

01:14:40.060 to begin with.

01:14:41.640 But what the

01:14:43.500 Taliban will do 1.00

01:14:44.220 and the intel

01:14:44.720 we got is

01:14:45.360 they will

01:14:45.740 recruit from

01:14:46.660 other nations

01:14:47.560 that hate

01:14:48.360 the West and

01:14:49.580 the United States

01:14:50.540 of America and

01:14:51.860 they will recruit

01:14:52.600 them to fill

01:14:53.500 the gap of

01:14:54.700 their deficiencies

01:14:55.800 in fighting.

01:14:58.020 And so,

01:14:58.840 we think it

01:15:00.340 was, you

01:15:01.780 know,

01:15:02.120 Chechnyan snipers

01:15:03.160 that had come

01:15:03.820 into our area

01:15:04.680 of operation to

01:15:05.540 support their

01:15:06.160 operations and

01:15:08.280 this guy was

01:15:09.240 on it.

01:15:10.300 Thankfully,

01:15:11.020 he didn't start

01:15:11.600 shooting at me

01:15:12.340 until I had

01:15:13.760 got, I

01:15:14.680 believe,

01:15:15.220 three sandbags

01:15:16.320 high of a

01:15:17.380 semi-circle built

01:15:18.820 around me.

01:15:19.280 So you could get

01:15:19.880 low enough.

01:15:20.600 Correct.

01:15:20.980 If I laid on

01:15:21.980 my chest

01:15:22.920 all the way

01:15:24.620 down on the

01:15:25.040 ground, up

01:15:25.800 against the

01:15:26.260 sandbags, I

01:15:27.780 couldn't get

01:15:28.200 hit.

01:15:28.960 But with that

01:15:29.700 said, I can

01:15:30.680 still feel it

01:15:31.400 right now.

01:15:32.160 It was so

01:15:32.620 eerie because

01:15:33.600 I was, you

01:15:36.680 know, I was

01:15:39.160 laying on my

01:15:40.460 side with my

01:15:41.660 back up against

01:15:42.480 the sandbags.

01:15:43.340 Okay.

01:15:43.600 because I

01:15:45.600 just, the

01:15:46.640 very rare

01:15:47.700 chance a

01:15:48.660 round made

01:15:49.100 it through,

01:15:50.560 I'm more

01:15:51.180 covered with

01:15:52.900 my front and

01:15:53.760 back sappy

01:15:54.660 armor plates.

01:15:55.520 Sure, than

01:15:55.880 the sides.

01:15:56.380 Than the sides.

01:15:57.120 Right.

01:15:57.420 And, you

01:15:58.200 know, God

01:15:59.060 forbid that

01:15:59.680 one percent

01:16:01.300 chance that

01:16:01.980 a round came

01:16:02.520 in and went

01:16:03.000 under my arm

01:16:03.940 or hit my

01:16:04.920 lungs, that's

01:16:06.080 a whole separate

01:16:07.160 issue.

01:16:07.680 Yeah, yeah.

01:16:08.600 And so I

01:16:09.020 remember laying

01:16:09.580 with my back

01:16:10.100 up against

01:16:10.480 these sandbags

01:16:11.380 and when

01:16:13.520 he fired, I

01:16:14.840 could feel the

01:16:16.400 impact and the

01:16:17.520 thud of the

01:16:18.340 round up

01:16:20.360 against the

01:16:20.840 sandbags

01:16:21.380 transferring into

01:16:22.920 the back of

01:16:23.720 my back.

01:16:25.000 So I just

01:16:25.700 kind of closed

01:16:26.400 my eyes,

01:16:26.840 squinting like,

01:16:27.760 oh man, this

01:16:28.620 is, is this

01:16:29.600 even real?

01:16:30.280 You know, going

01:16:30.740 back to being

01:16:31.520 so surreal.

01:16:32.660 Yeah.

01:16:33.620 But I

01:16:35.120 could, I

01:16:35.940 caught on very

01:16:36.460 quickly that it

01:16:37.060 was a single

01:16:37.580 bolt action

01:16:38.280 rifle, so I

01:16:39.100 knew I had a

01:16:39.780 second or two.

01:16:40.660 Yeah.

01:16:40.760 So my

01:16:41.580 buddies were

01:16:42.100 just tossing

01:16:42.780 sandbags up

01:16:43.480 on the roof.

01:16:44.520 I would grab

01:16:45.500 them, pull 0.80

01:16:46.000 them over to

01:16:46.620 me.

01:16:47.220 After he

01:16:47.760 shot, I

01:16:48.520 would stack

01:16:48.960 another one.

01:16:49.800 Because, yes,

01:16:51.660 maybe a stupid

01:16:53.240 decision, but we

01:16:54.380 had to get that

01:16:55.000 post built because

01:16:56.380 there had to be a

01:16:57.840 Marine up there

01:16:58.640 for those more

01:17:00.160 eyes.

01:17:00.720 Right.

01:17:00.980 You know, that

01:17:01.540 would have been a

01:17:02.360 huge gap in our

01:17:03.920 field of visual.

01:17:06.680 And so I got

01:17:08.700 this wall built.

01:17:09.560 Well, it was

01:17:10.060 getting close to

01:17:10.700 sundown, and

01:17:11.900 over there they

01:17:12.500 know that we

01:17:12.960 have night

01:17:13.300 vision capabilities,

01:17:14.780 so very, very

01:17:15.740 rarely, if ever,

01:17:16.980 do they mess with

01:17:17.600 you at night.

01:17:18.160 So we knew that

01:17:18.880 we would have

01:17:19.380 some calm to

01:17:20.300 keep building this

01:17:21.160 post up once the

01:17:22.420 sun went down.

01:17:23.240 Yeah.

01:17:23.620 So Staff Sergeant

01:17:24.440 Kroll, my

01:17:25.700 Staff Sergeant I

01:17:26.400 was talking about

01:17:26.900 that I heard on

01:17:27.400 the sat phone, he

01:17:28.900 came over, and

01:17:30.080 of course he's

01:17:30.600 messing with me,

01:17:31.060 I'm getting shot

01:17:31.620 at, and he's

01:17:31.980 like, oh, how's

01:17:33.320 the sun tanning

01:17:34.100 going up there?

01:17:35.160 I'm like, all

01:17:36.600 right, dude.

01:17:37.120 It seems like

01:17:37.760 you'd have to

01:17:38.460 though, like you'd

01:17:39.180 have to make, you'd

01:17:40.540 have to make light

01:17:41.280 of it in a way, and

01:17:42.580 I think that's why

01:17:43.520 a lot of military

01:17:44.920 guys, they have

01:17:45.860 kind of a dark

01:17:46.900 twisted humor,

01:17:47.880 because, well, I

01:17:49.660 mean, you're seeing

01:17:50.200 some crazy stuff, and

01:17:51.720 that's, again, a

01:17:53.200 defense mechanism,

01:17:54.120 right?

01:17:54.320 That's a way to

01:17:54.920 like, to take some

01:17:58.300 of the pain off,

01:17:59.720 for whatever it

01:18:00.520 might be.

01:18:00.640 Just get through

01:18:01.240 it.

01:18:01.740 Right, right.

01:18:02.580 And so, you know,

01:18:04.660 after he kind of

01:18:05.340 jokes with me, he's

01:18:06.040 like, come on,

01:18:06.500 carpenter, you know,

01:18:07.440 like, get down when

01:18:08.080 you can, you know,

01:18:09.840 we'll finish building

01:18:10.900 this in the next

01:18:12.280 couple hours.

01:18:13.560 So, I grab my

01:18:14.760 saw, wait for the

01:18:16.100 next shot, jump off

01:18:17.660 the roof.

01:18:20.240 45 seconds to a

01:18:21.600 minute later, a

01:18:22.960 rocket comes in,

01:18:25.140 and not only

01:18:26.600 vaporizes every

01:18:28.260 sandbag that I

01:18:29.360 had been working

01:18:29.980 on, but it

01:18:31.340 damages the roof

01:18:32.180 so bad that

01:18:33.200 later that night,

01:18:34.480 it collapsed.

01:18:35.780 Oh, my gosh.

01:18:36.100 So, we're down

01:18:36.700 to one roof, one

01:18:38.340 post.

01:18:39.940 So, my, November

01:18:40.700 21st, 2010,

01:18:43.180 myself and my

01:18:44.700 fellow Marine, we

01:18:45.800 were on our, we

01:18:47.520 did four-hour shifts

01:18:48.500 at a time.

01:18:50.000 We were at the

01:18:50.880 very end of our

01:18:51.620 shift.

01:18:52.140 I mean, one guy

01:18:52.780 was about to start

01:18:53.520 climbing up the

01:18:54.280 shaky bamboo ladder

01:18:55.420 to us.

01:18:56.360 Other guy was

01:18:56.980 throwing on his

01:18:57.640 gear.

01:18:58.000 And, Taliban 0.99

01:19:01.240 initiated a

01:19:03.020 daylight attack.

01:19:04.680 They threw four

01:19:05.800 grenades, the

01:19:08.580 fourth one hitting

01:19:09.920 us.

01:19:11.040 The third one was

01:19:12.280 a dud.

01:19:12.860 It didn't go off.

01:19:13.820 And then the

01:19:14.160 other two blew up

01:19:16.880 within the courtyard

01:19:17.760 of the compound.

01:19:18.940 Right.

01:19:19.340 And, you know, not

01:19:20.740 to mention the day

01:19:21.500 before, we had two

01:19:23.720 Marines and one of

01:19:25.220 the few Afghan

01:19:26.180 National Army

01:19:26.960 members that

01:19:28.240 were with us

01:19:28.940 down there.

01:19:30.180 All three, you

01:19:31.340 know, right off the

01:19:31.940 bat, three down

01:19:33.260 from the bodies

01:19:34.620 that we had, all

01:19:35.620 injured by hand

01:19:36.440 grenades.

01:19:36.940 Oh, man.

01:19:37.800 So, fast forward,

01:19:38.560 November 21st, we're

01:19:39.620 up there.

01:19:40.040 We're at the very

01:19:40.460 end of our shift.

01:19:41.720 And this attack

01:19:42.800 occurs.

01:19:43.380 And the fourth

01:19:45.980 one lands, you

01:19:48.440 know, and I

01:19:49.380 don't remember

01:19:49.840 this.

01:19:50.220 Everything is from

01:19:51.400 a very extensive

01:19:52.360 two-year-long,

01:19:53.500 252-page

01:19:55.660 investigation done

01:19:57.080 by the military.

01:19:57.900 But the grenade

01:20:01.140 lands in very

01:20:02.780 close proximity

01:20:03.580 to us.

01:20:05.200 I don't remember

01:20:06.160 anything really

01:20:07.480 from the whole

01:20:08.080 day before.

01:20:09.000 The only thing I

01:20:09.540 remember from the

01:20:10.020 entire day is

01:20:10.880 about 745.

01:20:12.820 Our alarm clock,

01:20:13.860 as usual, was us

01:20:15.060 getting attacked

01:20:15.660 by AK-47s.

01:20:17.560 I remember

01:20:18.360 rolling over,

01:20:19.920 unzipping my

01:20:20.560 sleeping bag,

01:20:21.640 throwing it off

01:20:22.240 of me, and kind

01:20:22.860 of thinking,

01:20:23.540 here we go,

01:20:24.640 you know, another

01:20:25.140 day in Afghanistan.

01:20:27.900 That's the only

01:20:28.380 thing I remember

01:20:29.140 until the grenade

01:20:30.420 went off.

01:20:32.460 And at that,

01:20:33.660 you know, from

01:20:34.040 the whole day

01:20:34.480 pretty much, I

01:20:35.000 only remember

01:20:35.480 physically how I

01:20:37.080 felt after that

01:20:38.960 grenade exploded.

01:20:40.880 And I remember,

01:20:45.060 I didn't know

01:20:46.260 what happened,

01:20:47.380 but I felt like I

01:20:48.600 got hit really

01:20:49.620 hard in the face.

01:20:51.440 When did you,

01:20:52.240 when was this

01:20:53.120 that you, was

01:20:54.340 this after it

01:20:55.100 had happened,

01:20:55.640 that you woke

01:20:56.160 up and came

01:20:56.740 to?

01:20:57.200 Yes.

01:20:57.540 And that's

01:20:58.360 what you're

01:20:59.300 experiencing now?

01:21:00.460 Okay.

01:21:00.760 Body still smoking

01:21:01.920 on the roof

01:21:02.780 when they roll

01:21:03.380 me over.

01:21:05.060 And you're

01:21:05.680 aware and awake

01:21:06.360 at that point.

01:21:07.060 Yeah, I couldn't

01:21:07.500 see anything.

01:21:08.180 My vision was

01:21:08.920 like looking at

01:21:09.540 a TV with no

01:21:10.280 connection.

01:21:11.260 It was just

01:21:11.540 white and gray

01:21:12.100 static.

01:21:13.140 My ears,

01:21:13.820 just like they

01:21:14.280 are right now,

01:21:15.040 were ringing

01:21:15.480 extremely loudly.

01:21:17.580 And so I was

01:21:19.120 just so disoriented.

01:21:20.380 and I not

01:21:24.180 only felt like I

01:21:24.860 got hit really

01:21:25.360 hard in the face,

01:21:26.300 but I was trying

01:21:28.200 to kind of like

01:21:29.420 push myself up

01:21:30.840 and kind of

01:21:31.240 shake it off.

01:21:32.080 Yeah.

01:21:32.560 But I couldn't

01:21:33.280 feel my arms.

01:21:34.660 And that's when

01:21:35.080 I was like,

01:21:35.680 oh man,

01:21:36.420 like this is not

01:21:37.140 good.

01:21:38.180 So as I was

01:21:38.920 thinking about it

01:21:40.420 and it's kind of

01:21:41.280 crazy I even had

01:21:42.060 the wherewithal to

01:21:42.780 try to put the

01:21:43.420 pieces together in

01:21:44.280 my head.

01:21:44.800 But I was

01:21:45.740 thinking,

01:21:46.120 okay,

01:21:46.280 the last thing

01:21:46.820 I remember,

01:21:48.000 I was on a

01:21:48.700 roof.

01:21:49.920 But what could

01:21:50.520 have possibly

01:21:51.040 injured me this

01:21:51.820 bad on a roof?

01:21:52.760 Like I clearly

01:21:53.420 didn't get shot.

01:21:54.540 There's not an

01:21:55.140 IED planted in

01:21:56.120 this roof.

01:21:57.060 Maybe I got off

01:21:58.040 the roof,

01:21:58.980 went on a foot

01:21:59.520 patrol,

01:22:00.200 stepped on an

01:22:00.680 IED,

01:22:01.320 and just the

01:22:01.740 last thing I

01:22:02.240 can remember

01:22:02.820 is being on

01:22:03.380 the roof.

01:22:03.900 That's got to

01:22:04.340 be so weird

01:22:05.380 not knowing.

01:22:06.200 So weird.

01:22:06.960 So weird.

01:22:07.700 Like the worst

01:22:08.900 thing I can think

01:22:09.860 of in this

01:22:10.280 context is you

01:22:11.700 go on vacation,

01:22:12.680 you wake up,

01:22:13.240 and you don't

01:22:13.560 know where you

01:22:14.020 are because

01:22:14.440 you're in

01:22:14.700 a new bed.

01:22:15.480 And I'm not

01:22:16.080 comparing the

01:22:17.380 two at all.

01:22:18.800 That's the only

01:22:19.640 frame of reference

01:22:20.440 I would have

01:22:20.900 from what you're

01:22:21.400 experiencing at

01:22:22.020 this point.

01:22:22.720 And I'm just

01:22:23.680 like,

01:22:23.960 what is going

01:22:24.520 on?

01:22:25.380 And so then

01:22:26.000 as I'm trying

01:22:26.700 to put the

01:22:27.120 pieces together,

01:22:28.720 and this just

01:22:29.520 alludes to

01:22:30.600 Marines' humor

01:22:31.980 and us messing

01:22:32.660 with each other,

01:22:33.980 but then my

01:22:34.900 thoughts of

01:22:35.620 trying to put

01:22:36.040 things together

01:22:36.700 was interrupted

01:22:37.680 by what I

01:22:38.920 thought was

01:22:40.400 warm water

01:22:41.160 being poured

01:22:41.720 over me.

01:22:42.940 I'm like,

01:22:43.420 come on,

01:22:44.400 guys,

01:22:44.840 like,

01:22:45.120 even in

01:22:45.640 this messed

01:22:46.420 up,

01:22:46.740 banged up

01:22:47.120 state,

01:22:47.780 you're still

01:22:48.660 messing with

01:22:49.200 me?

01:22:50.420 But

01:22:50.760 unfortunately,

01:22:52.240 that was very

01:22:52.920 quickly interrupted

01:22:54.320 by, you know,

01:22:55.420 the surreal

01:22:56.220 realization that

01:22:58.720 it wasn't water,

01:22:59.780 it was blood,

01:23:00.500 and I was bleeding

01:23:01.380 out profusely

01:23:02.740 over my whole

01:23:03.520 body.

01:23:03.920 and so at

01:23:05.940 that moment

01:23:06.580 I realized

01:23:07.480 I don't

01:23:08.500 know what

01:23:08.860 happened,

01:23:10.300 but I am

01:23:11.480 seriously

01:23:12.580 injured,

01:23:13.580 and just

01:23:13.900 from what I

01:23:14.860 had seen on

01:23:15.380 that deployment

01:23:15.920 so far,

01:23:17.680 our medical

01:23:18.520 training and

01:23:19.500 everything we

01:23:20.040 had been

01:23:20.340 through,

01:23:22.000 I knew I

01:23:22.500 was in

01:23:23.780 bad shape

01:23:24.380 and my

01:23:24.660 time was

01:23:25.060 probably

01:23:25.340 limited,

01:23:25.720 so I

01:23:26.720 used my

01:23:27.080 last few

01:23:27.620 seconds to

01:23:28.700 I thought

01:23:30.160 about my

01:23:30.540 family and

01:23:31.960 how devastated

01:23:33.060 my mom was

01:23:33.780 going to be

01:23:34.200 that I

01:23:34.680 didn't make

01:23:35.240 it home

01:23:35.740 like I

01:23:36.220 said I

01:23:36.500 would,

01:23:38.000 and then

01:23:39.980 my next

01:23:40.540 thought was

01:23:41.160 I said a

01:23:41.640 quick prayer

01:23:42.280 for forgiveness

01:23:43.800 and anything

01:23:45.080 I had done

01:23:45.840 wrong or

01:23:46.960 lived wrong

01:23:48.660 in my life,

01:23:49.360 and dude,

01:23:51.920 a tiredness

01:23:52.720 consumed me,

01:23:53.660 like one I

01:23:54.100 can't even

01:23:54.500 describe,

01:23:55.220 it was like

01:23:56.480 to the

01:23:58.300 center of

01:23:59.260 my stomach,

01:24:00.240 like the

01:24:00.660 core of

01:24:01.280 me,

01:24:01.560 I was just

01:24:02.260 so exhausted,

01:24:04.080 you know when

01:24:04.580 you're exhausted

01:24:05.040 at home in

01:24:05.640 front of the

01:24:06.180 TV,

01:24:07.200 kind of wake

01:24:07.820 up,

01:24:08.160 if you really

01:24:08.680 have to do

01:24:09.160 something you

01:24:09.620 can like kind

01:24:10.420 of snap out

01:24:11.060 of it,

01:24:11.640 but it was

01:24:12.120 just like

01:24:12.700 consuming every

01:24:14.380 fiber in me,

01:24:15.740 and at that

01:24:16.540 point I knew

01:24:17.860 what was coming

01:24:18.500 and I

01:24:19.300 closed my

01:24:19.900 eyes for

01:24:20.840 what I

01:24:21.200 thought was

01:24:21.640 going to be

01:24:22.140 my last

01:24:23.000 time on

01:24:23.380 this earth,

01:24:24.540 and went

01:24:26.480 unconscious on

01:24:27.640 a hot dusty

01:24:28.660 rooftop in

01:24:29.440 Afghanistan,

01:24:30.400 and I woke

01:24:30.960 up five

01:24:31.960 weeks later

01:24:32.640 to opening

01:24:34.420 my eye

01:24:35.800 that I had

01:24:36.280 left and

01:24:37.380 seeing five

01:24:39.520 red Christmas

01:24:40.240 stockings hanging

01:24:41.100 on my hospital

01:24:41.820 room wall with

01:24:43.300 snow building on

01:24:44.220 my window pane,

01:24:45.760 you know my

01:24:46.100 mom had decorated

01:24:47.040 my hospital room

01:24:48.000 for the holidays,

01:24:49.300 five weeks.

01:24:52.260 I woke up

01:24:53.180 one time

01:24:53.840 before the

01:24:54.420 time that I

01:24:54.900 really woke

01:24:55.480 up,

01:24:55.980 and I talk

01:24:56.620 about this

01:24:57.000 extensively in

01:24:57.740 the book,

01:24:58.320 because it was

01:24:59.020 the worst

01:24:59.320 point of my

01:24:59.780 recovery,

01:25:01.180 but I

01:25:01.780 had either

01:25:03.780 come out of

01:25:04.260 a brain

01:25:04.600 surgery or

01:25:05.240 was going

01:25:05.640 into one,

01:25:07.320 and my

01:25:08.400 parents were

01:25:08.980 good until

01:25:09.440 that point,

01:25:10.140 because they're

01:25:10.480 thinking,

01:25:11.900 no matter what

01:25:13.080 physically,

01:25:14.300 we can heal

01:25:15.180 him,

01:25:15.600 we can be

01:25:16.300 there for

01:25:16.780 him,

01:25:16.880 we can

01:25:17.180 get him

01:25:17.480 back.

01:25:18.940 But when

01:25:19.320 I lost

01:25:19.820 my mind

01:25:20.520 and started

01:25:21.060 hallucinating,

01:25:22.160 when they

01:25:22.460 kind of

01:25:22.780 brought me

01:25:23.160 off the

01:25:23.480 medication to

01:25:24.300 see where

01:25:24.680 I was

01:25:25.020 mentally at,

01:25:27.200 everything

01:25:27.600 from crashing

01:25:29.460 a plane

01:25:30.480 into Turner

01:25:31.420 Field,

01:25:32.060 where I had

01:25:32.460 grown up

01:25:32.820 going to

01:25:33.120 baseball games,

01:25:34.420 giant spiders

01:25:35.340 attacking my

01:25:36.060 hospital room

01:25:36.860 wall,

01:25:37.700 the Taliban

01:25:38.260 infiltrating the

01:25:39.300 hospital,

01:25:40.480 my dad,

01:25:41.340 I mean,

01:25:41.880 and all this

01:25:42.480 stuff is just

01:25:43.920 as real as

01:25:44.760 us sitting here

01:25:45.460 and me

01:25:45.680 touching this

01:25:46.220 table,

01:25:47.380 I thought,

01:25:48.300 because a young

01:25:49.460 Lance Corporal,

01:25:50.460 especially in my

01:25:51.180 disoriented,

01:25:52.020 banged up state,

01:25:53.320 we don't really

01:25:54.020 know there's

01:25:54.580 military medicine

01:25:55.540 to begin with.

01:25:56.860 We know the

01:25:57.540 doc and the

01:25:58.220 corpsman and

01:25:59.420 maybe the

01:25:59.960 battalion

01:26:00.440 surgeon,

01:26:01.640 but I didn't

01:26:02.280 know there was

01:26:02.620 a Walter Reed.

01:26:03.720 I didn't know

01:26:04.220 there was some

01:26:04.620 of the best

01:26:05.020 doctors in the

01:26:05.760 whole world

01:26:06.460 that were going

01:26:07.000 to save my

01:26:07.500 life wearing

01:26:08.420 camis and

01:26:09.700 not white

01:26:10.360 doctor coats,

01:26:11.260 which I had

01:26:11.600 always known.

01:26:12.880 So I was so

01:26:13.400 disoriented,

01:26:14.040 but in my

01:26:16.200 banged up

01:26:17.220 Medicaid estate

01:26:18.180 when they

01:26:18.520 brought me

01:26:18.940 out of this

01:26:19.320 and I had

01:26:19.600 these hallucinations,

01:26:21.760 you know,

01:26:22.340 with not knowing

01:26:23.240 about military

01:26:24.000 health care,

01:26:25.480 you know,

01:26:25.740 I didn't know

01:26:26.180 if my parents

01:26:26.940 were having to

01:26:27.420 pay for

01:26:27.760 everything,

01:26:28.800 and so I

01:26:29.740 was so

01:26:30.460 worried,

01:26:32.180 even though I

01:26:32.780 was on a

01:26:33.160 trach,

01:26:33.840 something was

01:26:34.220 breathing for

01:26:34.860 me,

01:26:35.080 I had a

01:26:35.400 million tubes

01:26:35.920 everywhere,

01:26:36.760 and I

01:26:37.160 couldn't express

01:26:37.860 anything or do

01:26:38.620 anything,

01:26:39.320 I was so

01:26:39.900 worried that my

01:26:40.560 parents,

01:26:41.620 you know,

01:26:41.800 I hallucinated

01:26:42.480 that they

01:26:43.060 sold their

01:26:43.820 home,

01:26:44.640 all the

01:26:45.060 cars,

01:26:45.540 they got

01:26:45.800 rid of

01:26:46.140 everything,

01:26:47.280 and they

01:26:47.560 just like

01:26:47.940 couldn't pay

01:26:48.820 for anything

01:26:49.340 anymore,

01:26:50.200 and so my

01:26:51.200 dad,

01:26:52.540 I don't know

01:26:52.920 if anybody's

01:26:53.320 ever seen

01:26:53.620 the movie

01:26:53.880 John Q,

01:26:54.540 but like my

01:26:55.060 dad,

01:26:55.800 in an attempt

01:26:56.400 to save

01:26:57.040 me and get

01:26:57.500 what I

01:26:57.820 needed,

01:26:59.160 I'm laying

01:26:59.800 in the bed,

01:27:00.740 and when I

01:27:01.200 really woke

01:27:01.700 up,

01:27:01.940 it was crazy

01:27:02.420 because the

01:27:03.740 room that I

01:27:04.180 was actually

01:27:04.660 in looked

01:27:05.260 nothing like

01:27:06.060 the room

01:27:06.460 that I was

01:27:06.960 manifesting in

01:27:08.400 my hallucinations,

01:27:09.320 but I

01:27:10.280 remember

01:27:10.560 looking over

01:27:11.540 and my

01:27:13.540 dad was

01:27:14.700 coming through

01:27:15.880 with just a

01:27:16.780 look of

01:27:17.100 despair and

01:27:17.740 anger on

01:27:18.220 his face,

01:27:19.380 charging through

01:27:20.100 the sliding

01:27:20.820 doors of

01:27:22.120 the ER

01:27:22.740 with shotgun

01:27:23.880 in hand,

01:27:25.300 demanding that

01:27:26.300 I get this

01:27:27.180 life-saving

01:27:27.780 surgery that

01:27:28.420 I needed,

01:27:29.740 and the

01:27:30.580 SWAT came

01:27:31.340 in and

01:27:32.160 blew them

01:27:32.780 to a million

01:27:33.200 pieces right

01:27:34.020 there in

01:27:34.460 front of me.

01:27:35.320 I even

01:27:36.020 heard,

01:27:36.860 they were so

01:27:37.380 real,

01:27:37.780 I even heard

01:27:38.300 the shotgun

01:27:38.900 clink against

01:27:40.440 the floor

01:27:41.040 when they

01:27:41.960 shot him

01:27:42.480 and he

01:27:42.780 fell,

01:27:44.100 and just

01:27:44.780 so bizarre

01:27:47.920 stuff like

01:27:48.540 that,

01:27:49.800 but the

01:27:51.020 one that

01:27:52.280 pretty much

01:27:53.660 the only

01:27:54.000 point that I

01:27:54.640 really got

01:27:55.060 choked up

01:27:55.680 writing the

01:27:56.220 book,

01:27:56.540 and that was

01:27:56.840 really hard

01:27:57.240 for me to

01:27:57.600 write,

01:27:58.380 and I still

01:27:59.140 get emotional

01:28:00.060 talking about

01:28:00.620 it right now,

01:28:01.240 is one of

01:28:03.360 the hallucinations

01:28:04.060 I had,

01:28:04.720 I was

01:28:09.820 standing on

01:28:10.360 this hill,

01:28:11.700 and there

01:28:12.960 was like a

01:28:13.380 massive field

01:28:14.240 around me,

01:28:15.380 and I could

01:28:15.720 see down into

01:28:16.480 this valley,

01:28:17.560 and there was

01:28:18.180 a funeral

01:28:18.560 going on,

01:28:19.700 and all you

01:28:21.320 could see was

01:28:22.020 like the

01:28:22.900 burial hole,

01:28:25.260 and then the

01:28:26.340 preacher,

01:28:27.320 the religious

01:28:28.740 person,

01:28:29.500 reading out

01:28:32.880 of the

01:28:33.120 Bible,

01:28:34.440 and performing

01:28:35.640 this funeral

01:28:36.600 with no one

01:28:37.740 there but

01:28:38.120 him,

01:28:39.040 and I

01:28:39.680 couldn't move,

01:28:40.320 my feet were

01:28:40.820 stuck,

01:28:41.280 and I was

01:28:41.540 just watching,

01:28:42.600 and the sky

01:28:43.220 was super

01:28:43.760 gray,

01:28:44.660 it was just

01:28:45.120 super eerie,

01:28:46.080 really eerie,

01:28:46.980 you couldn't

01:28:47.260 see anything,

01:28:47.800 it wasn't

01:28:48.100 trees or

01:28:48.560 anything for

01:28:49.040 miles,

01:28:49.340 just this

01:28:49.780 field,

01:28:50.660 and there

01:28:50.980 was one

01:28:51.440 big tree

01:28:52.140 right behind

01:28:52.860 me,

01:28:54.140 so I'm

01:28:54.580 looking and

01:28:55.180 watching and

01:28:55.680 thinking like,

01:28:56.160 what am I

01:28:56.520 doing here,

01:28:57.320 you know,

01:28:57.980 what is this,

01:28:59.500 and I

01:29:00.160 finally realized

01:29:01.220 that it

01:29:04.160 was my

01:29:04.520 funeral,

01:29:05.380 and I was

01:29:06.000 watching my

01:29:06.520 own funeral,

01:29:07.240 and no one

01:29:07.660 came,

01:29:08.520 and none of

01:29:09.000 my buddies

01:29:09.400 came because

01:29:10.020 they were so

01:29:10.600 mad at me

01:29:11.280 and disappointed

01:29:12.060 that I left

01:29:13.340 them early

01:29:14.060 in Afghanistan,

01:29:16.380 but as hard

01:29:17.960 as that was,

01:29:18.600 I'm so thankful

01:29:19.220 for it,

01:29:20.180 and sorry,

01:29:20.960 I know I'm

01:29:21.340 going off on

01:29:21.740 a little tangent,

01:29:22.600 but that is

01:29:25.220 a lesson that's

01:29:26.560 always stuck with

01:29:27.300 me,

01:29:27.600 you know,

01:29:28.360 even though I

01:29:28.880 had no

01:29:29.140 control over

01:29:29.780 that,

01:29:30.260 and I

01:29:30.500 know that

01:29:30.920 was,

01:29:31.300 you know,

01:29:31.580 completely

01:29:32.120 just a

01:29:33.020 hallucination,

01:29:34.520 you know,

01:29:35.180 what are you

01:29:36.060 doing day

01:29:37.500 to day and

01:29:38.180 throughout your

01:29:38.680 life to

01:29:39.800 make an

01:29:40.200 impact,

01:29:40.940 to love,

01:29:41.640 and to

01:29:41.960 take care

01:29:42.760 of others,

01:29:43.300 so,

01:29:44.220 you know,

01:29:44.460 pretty much

01:29:44.880 like,

01:29:46.760 I viewed

01:29:47.260 that as

01:29:47.920 a very

01:29:50.160 difficult

01:29:50.640 lesson on,

01:29:52.900 you know,

01:29:54.960 what do I

01:29:55.480 want my

01:29:55.880 legacy to

01:29:56.460 be.

01:29:56.700 what do

01:30:02.880 you want

01:30:03.180 your legacy

01:30:03.580 to be?

01:30:06.040 Well,

01:30:06.480 hopefully

01:30:06.780 someone shows

01:30:07.420 up at my

01:30:07.860 funeral.

01:30:08.920 You might

01:30:09.520 have a

01:30:09.840 couple people

01:30:10.340 there.

01:30:10.540 no,

01:30:11.860 man,

01:30:12.060 I just,

01:30:12.660 I want to

01:30:13.520 strive every

01:30:15.080 day to be a

01:30:15.760 good person,

01:30:16.720 to impact

01:30:19.180 people and

01:30:19.780 help people in

01:30:20.420 a positive

01:30:20.860 way,

01:30:21.280 and,

01:30:23.180 you know,

01:30:24.540 when I'm

01:30:24.980 gone,

01:30:25.780 for people

01:30:27.180 to miss me,

01:30:28.060 and I think

01:30:29.120 ultimately just

01:30:30.180 look at my

01:30:31.800 life and

01:30:32.480 hopefully learn

01:30:33.200 from it,

01:30:33.860 and them

01:30:35.200 think,

01:30:35.660 you know,

01:30:36.700 that was a

01:30:37.160 life well

01:30:37.660 lived.

01:30:39.760 But,

01:30:40.380 yeah,

01:30:41.220 so,

01:30:41.800 five weeks.

01:30:44.920 When they

01:30:45.600 did the

01:30:46.380 investigation,

01:30:48.540 you said that

01:30:49.260 was a two-year

01:30:49.800 investigation,

01:30:50.520 if I remember

01:30:50.900 correctly.

01:30:52.100 Correct.

01:30:52.960 I don't know

01:30:53.400 the exact

01:30:54.040 time,

01:30:54.580 but I know

01:30:55.200 that it was

01:30:55.900 not only that

01:30:56.600 length,

01:30:57.080 but hundreds

01:30:57.720 of pages

01:30:58.320 long.

01:30:58.560 That's great.

01:30:59.620 Did they

01:31:00.300 ever disclose

01:31:01.380 or have any

01:31:02.100 idea of

01:31:02.820 what type of

01:31:04.280 proximity you

01:31:05.060 were to

01:31:05.480 that grenade

01:31:05.960 when it

01:31:06.260 went off?

01:31:06.820 Were you

01:31:07.060 on top of

01:31:07.700 it?

01:31:07.960 Were you

01:31:08.380 within a

01:31:08.940 few feet?

01:31:09.520 Like,

01:31:09.740 what distance

01:31:11.180 did you

01:31:11.620 take that

01:31:12.020 blast?

01:31:12.960 So,

01:31:13.560 because we

01:31:15.100 were on a

01:31:15.600 roof,

01:31:16.480 it posed

01:31:17.120 a challenge

01:31:17.820 to get,

01:31:18.540 you know,

01:31:19.620 numerous

01:31:20.420 eyewitnesses

01:31:21.500 that saw

01:31:22.060 every inch

01:31:23.900 of my

01:31:24.500 action.

01:31:25.380 Right.

01:31:26.580 But there

01:31:27.420 were eyewitnesses

01:31:28.600 gave their

01:31:31.000 statement not

01:31:31.800 only during

01:31:33.340 that deployment,

01:31:34.060 after they

01:31:34.980 got back,

01:31:36.040 and then

01:31:36.320 all my

01:31:36.640 buddies who

01:31:37.060 were there

01:31:37.440 and not

01:31:37.800 injured and

01:31:38.620 still in the

01:31:39.180 Marine Corps,

01:31:40.160 when they

01:31:40.580 went back to

01:31:41.140 the exact

01:31:41.720 same area

01:31:43.300 in Marja,

01:31:44.360 exact same

01:31:45.140 patrol base,

01:31:46.420 seven,

01:31:46.960 eight months

01:31:47.400 later,

01:31:48.040 after they

01:31:48.520 had come

01:31:48.860 home,

01:31:49.520 had some

01:31:49.980 R&R,

01:31:51.020 bounced back

01:31:51.520 on their

01:31:51.800 second deployment,

01:31:53.420 they were

01:31:53.840 rounded up

01:31:54.440 again,

01:31:55.300 taken by

01:31:55.820 armored

01:31:56.180 convoy to

01:31:56.880 the same

01:31:57.320 compound,

01:31:58.400 given their

01:31:59.140 statements

01:31:59.600 again.

01:32:00.100 so the

01:32:00.780 eyewitness

01:32:01.140 statements,

01:32:01.900 very thorough,

01:32:03.080 and multiple

01:32:03.980 of those.

01:32:06.140 But one

01:32:07.040 of the

01:32:07.340 main

01:32:07.860 parts of

01:32:11.100 the

01:32:11.220 investigation

01:32:11.940 and that

01:32:14.200 supplemented,

01:32:16.020 I believe

01:32:16.580 me,

01:32:17.160 receiving the

01:32:17.660 Medal of

01:32:17.960 Honor,

01:32:18.300 was the

01:32:18.660 forensic

01:32:19.080 blast

01:32:20.120 analysis,

01:32:20.920 that they

01:32:21.240 brought

01:32:21.620 this expert,

01:32:23.300 you know,

01:32:23.620 from high

01:32:24.380 ranking to

01:32:25.240 low ranking

01:32:26.020 EOD,

01:32:27.740 which is

01:32:27.980 Explosive

01:32:28.540 Ordnance

01:32:28.880 Disposal

01:32:29.480 Marines.

01:32:30.160 They

01:32:30.520 brought

01:32:30.840 them in

01:32:31.480 to examine

01:32:32.700 the roof,

01:32:34.160 the seat

01:32:34.560 of the

01:32:34.800 blast,

01:32:35.400 my gear,

01:32:36.740 everything.

01:32:38.960 So,

01:32:39.980 they come

01:32:41.980 in,

01:32:43.180 not,

01:32:43.540 I mean,

01:32:43.880 my body

01:32:44.360 armor is

01:32:44.860 completely

01:32:45.640 vaporized.

01:32:46.300 Oh,

01:32:46.380 I'm sure.

01:32:46.900 My tourniquet,

01:32:48.320 which you

01:32:48.880 know how

01:32:49.180 durable a

01:32:49.660 tourniquet

01:32:50.000 is,

01:32:50.600 is melted

01:32:51.540 onto my

01:32:53.640 plate

01:32:54.880 carrier.

01:32:55.520 Oh,

01:32:55.780 wow.

01:32:56.200 The M4

01:32:56.860 that I was

01:32:57.320 holding was

01:32:58.300 torn apart,

01:33:01.160 split apart

01:33:01.820 in a hundred

01:33:02.860 pieces like

01:33:04.180 a hot knife

01:33:05.320 going through

01:33:05.840 butter.

01:33:06.540 I mean,

01:33:06.800 that's thick

01:33:07.320 steel.

01:33:07.880 Oh,

01:33:08.020 yeah.

01:33:08.360 So,

01:33:08.900 that was

01:33:09.260 completely

01:33:09.860 vaporized.

01:33:11.480 And then,

01:33:12.620 when they

01:33:13.060 found me and

01:33:13.760 got up to

01:33:14.240 me on the

01:33:14.680 roof,

01:33:15.740 I was

01:33:17.380 face down

01:33:18.260 in

01:33:19.180 essentially

01:33:20.680 a small

01:33:21.180 crater

01:33:21.660 that the

01:33:23.240 blast had

01:33:23.820 kind of

01:33:24.240 broken up

01:33:24.860 the integrity

01:33:25.420 of the roof

01:33:26.120 sunk down

01:33:27.200 in this

01:33:27.540 crater

01:33:27.800 face first

01:33:28.600 and they

01:33:29.900 actually

01:33:30.200 passed me

01:33:30.820 up at

01:33:31.360 first because

01:33:31.960 they just

01:33:32.360 assumed that

01:33:32.860 I was dead

01:33:33.420 and they

01:33:33.980 were going

01:33:34.200 to focus

01:33:34.580 on Nick

01:33:35.240 then get

01:33:35.800 us both

01:33:36.180 off of

01:33:36.540 the roof.

01:33:37.340 When they

01:33:37.960 rolled me

01:33:38.380 over and

01:33:39.560 I was

01:33:39.860 trying,

01:33:40.780 struggling to

01:33:41.300 breathe and

01:33:41.760 moaning,

01:33:42.780 they said I

01:33:43.360 was still

01:33:44.080 smoking like

01:33:45.020 straight off

01:33:45.500 of a

01:33:45.780 barbecue.

01:33:47.560 But,

01:33:47.760 with all

01:33:48.320 of that

01:33:48.640 said,

01:33:50.060 so,

01:33:52.100 you know,

01:33:52.440 with physics,

01:33:53.280 everything,

01:33:53.660 mostly I

01:33:55.140 believe in

01:33:55.600 life,

01:33:55.940 takes the

01:33:56.320 path of

01:33:56.720 least

01:33:56.920 resistance.

01:33:58.800 So,

01:33:59.480 you know,

01:33:59.820 if I threw

01:34:00.260 a grenade

01:34:00.620 right here

01:34:01.060 on the

01:34:01.300 ground,

01:34:02.160 yeah,

01:34:02.500 carpet might

01:34:03.000 be a little

01:34:03.360 burn,

01:34:03.800 there might

01:34:04.060 be a little

01:34:04.400 spot,

01:34:05.040 but that

01:34:05.400 blast is

01:34:05.860 going to

01:34:06.040 go up

01:34:06.480 because

01:34:06.680 nothing is

01:34:07.240 hindering

01:34:07.580 it.

01:34:09.000 But,

01:34:09.800 which you

01:34:11.420 can still

01:34:11.840 see this

01:34:12.420 on Google

01:34:12.880 Earth,

01:34:13.380 it's in

01:34:13.660 the book,

01:34:14.100 one of the

01:34:14.400 pictures I

01:34:14.880 put,

01:34:16.160 but the

01:34:18.340 way they

01:34:18.840 knew I

01:34:19.160 was on

01:34:19.400 top of

01:34:19.880 it is

01:34:20.940 because the

01:34:22.220 seed of

01:34:22.620 the blast

01:34:23.280 the

01:34:26.940 grenade,

01:34:27.600 when it

01:34:27.840 was

01:34:28.020 sandwiched

01:34:28.700 between

01:34:29.160 the weight

01:34:30.440 of my

01:34:30.740 body

01:34:31.220 backed by

01:34:32.300 a protective

01:34:34.260 plate of

01:34:34.820 armor,

01:34:35.360 my vest,

01:34:36.640 when that

01:34:37.340 sandwiched,

01:34:38.180 that grenade

01:34:38.640 in between

01:34:39.240 the roof,

01:34:41.360 that grenade,

01:34:43.160 you know,

01:34:43.580 these compounds

01:34:44.760 in these

01:34:45.100 villages

01:34:45.440 have been

01:34:45.900 there for

01:34:46.360 hundreds,

01:34:47.040 if not

01:34:47.340 thousands of

01:34:48.000 years,

01:34:49.360 and so

01:34:49.640 that roof

01:34:50.240 had,

01:34:50.800 you know,

01:34:51.560 it's very

01:34:52.240 strong mud,

01:34:53.100 but at the

01:34:53.440 same time,

01:34:54.800 my body

01:34:55.320 weight in

01:34:55.660 that armor

01:34:56.300 was stronger

01:34:57.340 than the

01:34:58.880 roof itself,

01:34:59.840 so the

01:35:00.540 grenade blew

01:35:01.460 a hole down

01:35:02.360 through the

01:35:02.920 roof,

01:35:03.680 which is

01:35:05.960 what I'm

01:35:06.220 saying you

01:35:06.560 can still

01:35:06.860 see on

01:35:07.200 Google Earth,

01:35:07.900 this hole,

01:35:08.680 and so,

01:35:09.160 you know,

01:35:11.340 and I've

01:35:11.660 talked to

01:35:12.020 the post-blast

01:35:12.620 analysis team

01:35:13.400 since,

01:35:13.960 because,

01:35:14.760 you know,

01:35:15.100 it's kind

01:35:16.180 of crazy

01:35:16.600 for all

01:35:17.160 this stuff

01:35:17.660 to happen

01:35:18.140 in my

01:35:18.480 life,

01:35:18.980 the medal

01:35:19.440 in front

01:35:19.880 of the

01:35:20.160 country,

01:35:20.560 all this

01:35:20.820 stuff,

01:35:21.200 and I

01:35:21.600 can't

01:35:21.860 remember

01:35:22.220 it,

01:35:22.640 and so,

01:35:23.420 not doubting

01:35:24.560 what happened,

01:35:25.220 but just

01:35:25.520 talking to

01:35:26.140 them and

01:35:26.540 saying,

01:35:26.860 hey,

01:35:27.100 give me

01:35:27.800 your first-hand

01:35:28.420 account,

01:35:29.640 and tell

01:35:30.220 me how

01:35:31.380 confident

01:35:31.860 you are

01:35:32.400 in everything

01:35:33.400 you looked

01:35:33.920 at,

01:35:34.700 and they

01:35:35.200 just said,

01:35:35.960 like,

01:35:36.540 dude,

01:35:37.420 you know,

01:35:38.840 I mean,

01:35:39.640 it was hard

01:35:40.860 to see,

01:35:41.420 but it was

01:35:41.740 so incredible

01:35:42.360 because that

01:35:43.900 physically

01:35:44.760 just,

01:35:47.000 there is

01:35:48.340 no way

01:35:48.900 that could 0.68

01:35:49.260 have ever

01:35:49.780 possibly

01:35:50.740 happened

01:35:51.380 if your

01:35:53.120 weight and

01:35:53.780 body armor

01:35:54.500 hadn't

01:35:54.960 sandwiched it

01:35:55.640 and blew

01:35:56.120 it down

01:35:56.480 through the

01:35:56.900 roof,

01:35:57.580 and so

01:35:58.460 that was

01:35:59.360 the forensic

01:36:00.020 piece of

01:36:00.560 evidence that

01:36:01.180 fit into

01:36:01.700 the investigation,

01:36:03.420 so,

01:36:04.320 yeah,

01:36:05.080 unfortunately,

01:36:05.720 you know,

01:36:05.860 I don't remember

01:36:06.340 doing it,

01:36:07.020 but from

01:36:07.980 all of that

01:36:08.720 investigation,

01:36:09.500 eyewitness

01:36:09.880 accounts,

01:36:10.640 that team

01:36:11.240 and their

01:36:12.140 report,

01:36:13.280 yes,

01:36:14.080 I covered

01:36:15.080 the grenade

01:36:16.020 that was

01:36:16.460 thrown at

01:36:17.020 me and

01:36:17.580 my fellow

01:36:17.980 Marine.

01:36:18.600 Is that

01:36:19.060 frustrating to

01:36:19.900 you that

01:36:20.240 you can't

01:36:20.880 remember that

01:36:21.480 or are you

01:36:22.500 glad that

01:36:23.020 you can't

01:36:23.460 remember?

01:36:24.380 So,

01:36:24.900 it used to

01:36:25.300 frustrate me

01:36:26.020 and not that

01:36:26.840 I was,

01:36:27.220 like,

01:36:27.340 super fixated

01:36:28.300 on it,

01:36:28.960 but I did,

01:36:29.940 you know,

01:36:30.220 think about it

01:36:30.840 all the time,

01:36:32.220 like,

01:36:34.200 obviously,

01:36:34.760 I got very

01:36:35.280 hurt,

01:36:35.880 but it's like,

01:36:36.900 all of this

01:36:38.680 just insane

01:36:40.260 out of this

01:36:40.860 world stuff

01:36:41.420 is happening

01:36:41.960 in my life,

01:36:42.720 you know,

01:36:43.480 people from

01:36:43.940 the Pentagon

01:36:44.360 are calling

01:36:45.000 me,

01:36:45.980 you know,

01:36:46.560 fast forward

01:36:46.980 a couple

01:36:47.320 years,

01:36:47.740 the president

01:36:48.180 called me,

01:36:48.980 and all this

01:36:49.480 stuff happened,

01:36:50.500 and it's my

01:36:51.500 life,

01:36:52.040 and I can't

01:36:52.500 even remember

01:36:52.940 it,

01:36:53.180 and not only

01:36:53.620 can I remember

01:36:54.180 that,

01:36:55.000 I can't remember

01:36:55.740 five weeks

01:36:56.280 following that,

01:36:57.300 so I used to

01:36:58.060 get a little

01:36:58.460 frustrated,

01:37:00.160 but,

01:37:01.060 you know,

01:37:01.560 thinking about

01:37:02.340 it,

01:37:02.540 because I like

01:37:03.200 to take time

01:37:04.080 to really think

01:37:04.800 deeply about

01:37:05.520 things,

01:37:06.700 and thinking

01:37:07.360 about it,

01:37:08.000 I realized,

01:37:08.760 like,

01:37:09.020 how crazy I was

01:37:09.980 for even

01:37:10.500 being caring,

01:37:13.840 or being

01:37:14.300 frustrated at

01:37:15.220 that,

01:37:15.660 like,

01:37:16.300 I'm just

01:37:16.720 thankful to

01:37:17.180 be alive,

01:37:17.860 and I'm

01:37:18.160 thankful to

01:37:18.580 still be

01:37:19.040 here,

01:37:19.840 and,

01:37:20.420 you know,

01:37:20.620 they all

01:37:20.940 did their

01:37:21.300 jobs,

01:37:22.380 it happened

01:37:22.860 the way it

01:37:23.240 happened,

01:37:24.140 and I'm

01:37:24.860 just,

01:37:25.360 I'm just

01:37:26.660 so,

01:37:27.560 I'm still

01:37:28.660 in shock,

01:37:29.740 but I'm

01:37:30.100 just so

01:37:30.460 thankful that

01:37:31.360 I even

01:37:32.560 woke up,

01:37:33.320 and I had

01:37:33.760 this,

01:37:34.800 you know,

01:37:35.460 bonus round

01:37:36.160 at life

01:37:36.720 that I'm

01:37:37.200 living now.

01:37:38.580 That's an

01:37:38.980 interesting way

01:37:39.520 to look at

01:37:39.980 it,

01:37:40.080 your bonus

01:37:40.560 round,

01:37:41.660 that's

01:37:41.980 interesting.

01:37:42.480 What were

01:37:42.780 the extent

01:37:44.240 of your

01:37:44.620 injuries?

01:37:46.840 So,

01:37:48.140 I had,

01:37:52.440 still have

01:37:53.840 some,

01:37:54.400 but I had

01:37:55.140 more shrapnel

01:37:56.780 in my brain.

01:37:58.940 There's still

01:37:59.420 pieces there?

01:38:00.560 Mm-hmm.

01:38:01.040 Wow.

01:38:01.540 Yeah.

01:38:01.920 And they'll

01:38:02.320 always be there?

01:38:03.980 They'll always

01:38:04.640 be there,

01:38:05.120 yeah,

01:38:05.420 and,

01:38:06.220 you know,

01:38:06.540 they take out

01:38:07.100 the pieces

01:38:07.540 that they

01:38:07.980 can,

01:38:09.120 that they're

01:38:09.620 confident that

01:38:10.300 they won't

01:38:10.600 cause any

01:38:11.040 more damage.

01:38:12.180 But obviously

01:38:12.640 the brain,

01:38:13.300 especially the

01:38:13.840 frontal lobe,

01:38:15.100 is very delicate,

01:38:16.580 and you never

01:38:17.740 know how it's

01:38:18.180 going to react.

01:38:19.200 So,

01:38:19.420 some of them,

01:38:20.600 you know,

01:38:20.980 if I was

01:38:22.180 doing okay

01:38:22.900 up to that

01:38:23.460 point,

01:38:24.260 and still

01:38:25.320 hanging on,

01:38:26.380 they kind of

01:38:27.440 removed what

01:38:28.260 they could,

01:38:28.920 and then left

01:38:29.940 the pieces that

01:38:30.660 might have caused

01:38:31.560 more harm than

01:38:32.340 good.

01:38:32.700 Sure.

01:38:33.360 So,

01:38:33.920 shrapnel in

01:38:34.600 my brain,

01:38:35.600 both eardrums

01:38:37.140 were blown out.

01:38:37.980 The right was

01:38:38.600 significantly worse.

01:38:39.880 That needed

01:38:40.360 surgical repair.

01:38:41.440 The left,

01:38:42.620 if you do blow

01:38:43.400 your eardrums

01:38:44.000 and it's not

01:38:44.580 really bad,

01:38:46.360 the body will

01:38:47.120 kind of repair

01:38:47.720 itself on its

01:38:48.360 own.

01:38:49.060 But I had to

01:38:49.540 have a full

01:38:50.020 repair on my

01:38:51.060 right.

01:38:51.440 I had a

01:38:53.680 hole blown

01:38:54.540 through my

01:38:55.120 carotid from

01:38:55.960 a piece of

01:38:56.440 shrapnel,

01:38:57.380 so I had to

01:38:58.200 get that

01:38:58.600 patched.

01:38:59.920 Most of my

01:39:00.700 time at

01:39:01.200 Walter Reed

01:39:01.960 and my

01:39:02.740 reconstruction

01:39:03.340 and most of

01:39:04.360 my surgeries

01:39:04.980 were from

01:39:06.600 facial and

01:39:08.180 oral

01:39:08.500 reconstruction.

01:39:09.940 The grenade

01:39:10.920 blew most of

01:39:11.780 my teeth out.

01:39:13.320 It completely

01:39:14.980 blew my

01:39:15.640 entire lower

01:39:16.420 jaw off.

01:39:17.300 They said it

01:39:17.720 was kind of

01:39:18.820 resting on my

01:39:19.680 shoulder.

01:39:20.080 keep going

01:39:23.520 down.

01:39:24.060 My arms

01:39:24.840 were severely

01:39:26.440 damaged.

01:39:27.340 My right

01:39:27.840 more than

01:39:28.180 my left.

01:39:28.780 My right

01:39:29.140 had 30

01:39:29.680 fractures.

01:39:31.060 Both arms

01:39:31.840 have significant

01:39:32.760 nerve damage.

01:39:34.460 I had a

01:39:35.180 fully collapsed

01:39:36.960 right lung,

01:39:37.860 partially collapsed

01:39:38.820 left lung.

01:39:40.660 Thankfully,

01:39:41.900 surprisingly,

01:39:42.840 no more

01:39:43.660 internal injuries

01:39:44.920 besides my

01:39:45.620 collapsed lung.

01:39:46.840 That's amazing.

01:39:47.620 And they

01:39:47.860 think,

01:39:48.320 you know,

01:39:48.820 surprise,

01:39:49.360 surprise,

01:39:49.580 that my

01:39:50.840 right lung

01:39:51.340 was fully

01:39:52.360 collapsed

01:39:53.300 because that

01:39:55.780 kind of in

01:39:56.680 the upper

01:39:57.100 right quadrant

01:39:57.900 is where,

01:39:58.700 you know,

01:39:59.200 that grenade

01:39:59.760 was sandwiched

01:40:00.780 in between

01:40:01.160 the roof.

01:40:02.400 And so,

01:40:02.980 but then,

01:40:06.680 you know,

01:40:06.900 everything else

01:40:07.600 was just like

01:40:08.660 tissue damage

01:40:09.380 on my legs

01:40:10.100 and stuff like

01:40:10.720 that.

01:40:11.280 So,

01:40:12.240 waist down,

01:40:13.020 I was good.

01:40:13.900 And I'm,

01:40:14.640 you know,

01:40:14.880 in hindsight,

01:40:15.420 I'm so

01:40:16.220 thankful for

01:40:17.920 that.

01:40:18.280 Obviously,

01:40:19.420 the less

01:40:19.860 injuries,

01:40:20.280 the better.

01:40:21.180 But since

01:40:21.880 my legs

01:40:22.380 were good,

01:40:24.300 it allowed

01:40:24.940 me to start

01:40:25.680 standing up,

01:40:26.640 to walking,

01:40:27.800 and getting

01:40:28.420 moving,

01:40:29.180 which I think

01:40:30.060 drastically

01:40:31.420 expedited my

01:40:32.580 upper body

01:40:33.240 healing.

01:40:34.140 I imagine,

01:40:34.760 even just the

01:40:35.320 morale of being

01:40:36.480 able to get up

01:40:37.100 and get moving,

01:40:37.740 I'm sure it was

01:40:38.180 there too.

01:40:38.540 which was a

01:40:39.680 very long

01:40:40.300 and difficult

01:40:40.700 road just to

01:40:41.420 even sit up

01:40:42.040 in the bed.

01:40:43.260 But once I

01:40:44.400 got to a point,

01:40:45.820 you know,

01:40:46.100 where I could

01:40:46.500 stand,

01:40:47.700 now looking back,

01:40:49.240 I'm so thankful

01:40:49.880 that my legs

01:40:51.160 were left okay

01:40:52.020 because it would

01:40:52.580 have been,

01:40:53.420 I mean,

01:40:54.660 the amputees

01:40:55.360 and the guys

01:40:55.760 that I recover

01:40:56.320 with are just,

01:40:57.680 they're super

01:40:58.320 human and they

01:40:59.260 inspire me every

01:41:00.260 day.

01:41:00.780 So I could

01:41:01.400 have done it,

01:41:02.020 but it just

01:41:03.060 would have been,

01:41:03.900 you know,

01:41:04.400 that much more

01:41:05.260 of a challenge.

01:41:06.800 How did you

01:41:07.540 not die?

01:41:09.500 I mean,

01:41:10.120 I don't know

01:41:10.880 how to word

01:41:11.580 that.

01:41:11.880 Like,

01:41:12.100 how are you

01:41:13.280 not dead?

01:41:16.020 That is the

01:41:17.040 million dollar

01:41:17.560 question.

01:41:18.520 You know,

01:41:19.520 after everything

01:41:23.620 that happened

01:41:24.260 and the way

01:41:26.180 my life continues

01:41:27.220 to pan out,

01:41:29.220 I definitely

01:41:29.880 have way less

01:41:30.700 answers than

01:41:31.420 more.

01:41:33.120 But I do,

01:41:36.740 I,

01:41:37.300 I'm continually

01:41:40.060 shown more

01:41:41.900 and more

01:41:42.160 examples of,

01:41:44.380 you know,

01:41:47.220 maybe there

01:41:47.900 really is a

01:41:49.100 bigger plan

01:41:49.800 for me

01:41:50.340 and that

01:41:52.020 I need to

01:41:53.240 be here

01:41:53.720 and I might

01:41:54.280 not know

01:41:55.060 exactly what

01:41:55.880 I'm doing,

01:41:57.360 but that's

01:41:58.680 okay.

01:41:59.260 You know,

01:41:59.560 I'm still

01:41:59.940 here and

01:42:01.360 I'm trying

01:42:02.060 to help

01:42:02.700 people one

01:42:03.200 day at a

01:42:03.540 time.

01:42:04.880 So,

01:42:05.780 you know,

01:42:06.760 I,

01:42:07.400 I believe

01:42:09.500 that God

01:42:16.300 and a

01:42:17.280 higher power

01:42:18.020 helped me

01:42:19.880 in that

01:42:20.880 moment of

01:42:21.480 my journey

01:42:22.020 because you're

01:42:23.380 right,

01:42:23.600 I don't know

01:42:24.100 how physically

01:42:25.380 a human body

01:42:26.260 could go

01:42:27.400 through half

01:42:27.940 of that

01:42:28.420 and not

01:42:29.540 only survive

01:42:30.300 but wake

01:42:30.840 up halfway

01:42:31.940 okay.

01:42:33.540 And then,

01:42:34.320 you know,

01:42:34.640 the other

01:42:34.920 side of

01:42:35.460 it is

01:42:35.980 from the

01:42:38.300 moment I

01:42:38.820 was hit,

01:42:39.660 you know,

01:42:40.040 regardless of

01:42:40.760 if they were

01:42:41.160 getting shot

01:42:41.720 at,

01:42:42.120 if more

01:42:42.500 grenades

01:42:42.860 were being

01:42:43.280 thrown,

01:42:45.180 my fellow

01:42:45.780 Marines,

01:42:46.920 Lance

01:42:48.160 Corporal

01:42:48.660 Jared

01:42:49.040 Lilly,

01:42:49.820 first one

01:42:50.280 to me,

01:42:51.660 my Navy

01:42:52.940 Corpsman,

01:42:53.940 Doc

01:42:54.180 Friend,

01:42:55.640 you know,

01:42:55.920 they ran

01:42:56.620 up barely

01:42:57.820 having time

01:42:59.040 to throw

01:42:59.400 their gear

01:42:59.980 on and

01:43:01.820 immediately

01:43:02.720 not only

01:43:03.580 got me off

01:43:04.540 the roof

01:43:05.140 but all the

01:43:06.160 Marines I

01:43:06.580 was with,

01:43:07.880 you know,

01:43:08.240 pretty much

01:43:08.620 started an

01:43:09.120 assembly line

01:43:10.080 of combat

01:43:10.820 galls and

01:43:11.900 trying to

01:43:12.300 stop that

01:43:12.800 bleeding and

01:43:14.080 did everything

01:43:14.820 they could

01:43:15.640 to keep me

01:43:17.540 alive.

01:43:18.920 And,

01:43:19.400 you know,

01:43:20.080 not only

01:43:21.600 those first

01:43:22.500 ones on the

01:43:22.960 ground,

01:43:23.380 which I

01:43:23.760 wouldn't have

01:43:24.200 even made

01:43:24.880 it,

01:43:25.080 the 12

01:43:26.340 minutes for

01:43:26.880 the medevac

01:43:27.380 to arrive

01:43:28.060 if it

01:43:28.420 wasn't for

01:43:28.840 them,

01:43:29.740 but then

01:43:30.480 this medevac

01:43:32.420 helicopter,

01:43:34.560 Air Force

01:43:35.220 pararescue

01:43:36.400 jumpers,

01:43:37.940 badasses,

01:43:40.500 they,

01:43:41.120 you know,

01:43:43.520 are in

01:43:43.940 this safe

01:43:44.820 aircraft

01:43:45.180 flying back

01:43:46.100 to base.

01:43:47.380 They get

01:43:48.100 a call,

01:43:48.840 they have,

01:43:49.340 you know,

01:43:49.660 one extra

01:43:50.720 spot left

01:43:51.980 on the

01:43:52.300 bird with

01:43:53.140 not a

01:43:53.440 casualty in

01:43:54.120 it.

01:43:54.240 they can

01:43:54.920 afford to

01:43:55.400 pick me

01:43:55.760 up.

01:43:56.660 They just

01:43:57.440 happen to

01:43:58.020 be flying

01:43:58.620 by in

01:43:59.620 that time

01:44:00.180 frame.

01:44:01.860 They choose

01:44:03.260 to turn

01:44:04.180 around,

01:44:05.640 fly directly

01:44:06.660 into one

01:44:08.620 of the worst

01:44:09.120 battles because

01:44:09.980 after,

01:44:11.600 you know,

01:44:11.860 as the

01:44:12.160 medevac came

01:44:12.780 and after we

01:44:13.320 left,

01:44:14.540 a terrible

01:44:16.660 firefight ensued.

01:44:18.020 they flew

01:44:19.720 into the

01:44:20.160 heart of

01:44:20.880 battle and

01:44:21.840 darkness

01:44:22.400 and risked

01:44:23.800 their lives

01:44:24.540 not making

01:44:25.240 it back to

01:44:25.760 their families

01:44:26.520 and they

01:44:27.140 didn't care

01:44:27.660 anything else

01:44:28.620 but in that

01:44:29.180 moment getting

01:44:30.360 to those two

01:44:31.320 injured marines.

01:44:32.180 they flew

01:44:33.900 down,

01:44:34.940 they landed

01:44:35.760 and they

01:44:36.300 didn't move

01:44:36.800 an inch

01:44:37.360 until I was

01:44:38.080 loaded on

01:44:38.660 board and

01:44:39.680 taken care of

01:44:40.480 and in their

01:44:40.900 hands.

01:44:41.860 My buddies

01:44:42.380 handed me off

01:44:43.080 to them.

01:44:44.540 They've told me

01:44:45.200 since.

01:44:45.660 They told me

01:44:46.100 they loved me.

01:44:47.220 They didn't

01:44:47.540 think they were

01:44:47.980 going to see

01:44:48.340 me again.

01:44:49.560 They told me

01:44:50.100 bye and they

01:44:52.140 got me to the

01:44:52.660 hospital and they

01:44:53.380 were handing me

01:44:53.960 off to the

01:44:54.440 hospital staff at

01:44:56.120 that first base 0.53

01:44:56.880 there exactly

01:44:58.940 30 minutes

01:44:59.800 after they

01:45:00.580 picked me up

01:45:01.360 and then you

01:45:02.440 go for me.

01:45:03.240 Wow.

01:45:03.560 Yeah, I know.

01:45:04.920 In the middle

01:45:06.040 of nowhere

01:45:06.420 Afghanistan.

01:45:07.360 Pick me up in

01:45:07.820 12 minutes and

01:45:08.640 you have me to

01:45:09.060 the hospital in

01:45:09.600 30 minutes and

01:45:11.360 not only that,

01:45:13.040 then you go

01:45:13.680 through all

01:45:14.600 three combat

01:45:15.580 trauma hospitals

01:45:16.500 I went through.

01:45:18.640 Three hospitals

01:45:19.560 in Afghanistan

01:45:20.260 then to

01:45:21.080 Germany where

01:45:22.660 they kept me

01:45:23.280 alive for three

01:45:24.140 days.

01:45:25.140 They caught

01:45:25.760 out of all

01:45:26.700 the stuff

01:45:27.160 I had going

01:45:27.680 on.

01:45:28.420 They discovered

01:45:29.320 a small blood

01:45:30.640 clot in my

01:45:31.380 left leg,

01:45:32.140 my left calf,

01:45:33.220 so they didn't

01:45:34.300 fly me home

01:45:35.080 because of the

01:45:35.500 altitude and

01:45:36.220 pressure change

01:45:36.880 could have

01:45:37.280 knocked that

01:45:37.820 blood clot

01:45:38.280 loose.

01:45:38.840 Oh, yeah.

01:45:40.040 They keep me

01:45:40.960 alive.

01:45:41.820 They put me

01:45:42.440 on this

01:45:43.380 C-130

01:45:46.180 flying hospital

01:45:47.960 pretty much

01:45:48.760 airplane.

01:45:50.480 You know,

01:45:50.680 myself,

01:45:51.640 I think it

01:45:52.460 was around

01:45:53.200 maybe 50

01:45:54.380 other casualties

01:45:56.340 on there

01:45:57.040 all differing

01:45:58.560 in severity.

01:45:59.220 Some are

01:45:59.740 ambulatory and

01:46:00.540 can just walk

01:46:01.100 on the plane.

01:46:02.440 And then the

01:46:02.820 two worst ones

01:46:03.880 that were

01:46:04.200 injured,

01:46:04.560 myself and

01:46:05.340 a soldier,

01:46:07.960 an army guy

01:46:09.140 named Ryan

01:46:09.720 Craig,

01:46:10.460 took a direct

01:46:12.060 shot straight

01:46:13.180 into the head

01:46:14.040 by a sniper up

01:46:15.040 in the mountains

01:46:15.500 of Afghanistan.

01:46:17.300 And we were

01:46:17.740 the two worst

01:46:18.300 injured ones,

01:46:18.980 and they put

01:46:19.460 us on this

01:46:20.520 plane.

01:46:21.980 We have

01:46:22.540 a nurse

01:46:24.620 and doctor

01:46:25.320 team individually,

01:46:26.640 each of us,

01:46:27.280 that are only

01:46:27.980 there to fly

01:46:28.840 the eight hours

01:46:29.620 and keep us

01:46:30.260 alive to D.C.

01:46:32.280 Oh, wow.

01:46:33.520 You know,

01:46:33.920 so me and

01:46:34.700 Ryan were there,

01:46:36.380 two worst,

01:46:37.020 like worst

01:46:38.060 injured ones,

01:46:39.460 and not comparing,

01:46:40.440 but I'm just

01:46:40.840 saying they

01:46:41.560 kept us alive.

01:46:42.900 They got us

01:46:43.720 to D.C.

01:46:45.860 The police

01:46:46.460 escort,

01:46:47.400 you know,

01:46:48.580 ready to go.

01:46:50.120 They loaded us

01:46:51.020 on the back

01:46:51.880 of an 18-wheeler

01:46:52.860 that has been

01:46:53.720 retrofitted as

01:46:55.200 an 18-wheeler

01:46:57.160 moving hospital

01:46:58.120 that transfers

01:46:58.840 you from the

01:46:59.840 plane straight

01:47:01.260 off the runway

01:47:01.900 to Walter Reed,

01:47:03.940 through the gates

01:47:04.380 of Walter Reed.

01:47:05.480 You know,

01:47:05.640 the cops that,

01:47:06.740 you know,

01:47:07.500 sped forward,

01:47:08.760 stopped traffic,

01:47:10.040 got this 18-wheeler

01:47:11.240 there.

01:47:12.120 And then the

01:47:12.820 journey really

01:47:13.540 just began

01:47:14.280 when I got

01:47:14.720 to Walter Reed

01:47:15.520 in the three

01:47:16.140 years of surgeries.

01:47:18.100 You know,

01:47:18.340 all the corpsmen

01:47:19.320 and the medics

01:47:20.100 and all of them

01:47:20.660 at Walter Reed

01:47:21.280 that sat with me

01:47:22.800 through the darkest,

01:47:24.580 longest hours

01:47:25.220 of the night

01:47:25.900 with no lights on,

01:47:27.820 just sitting there

01:47:28.720 to themselves

01:47:29.600 on a one-to-one

01:47:31.100 with me

01:47:31.620 to make sure

01:47:32.700 if I coded

01:47:34.160 in the middle

01:47:34.700 of the night

01:47:35.260 that there wouldn't

01:47:36.760 be a five-second delay

01:47:38.080 and somebody

01:47:38.600 get into my room.

01:47:39.660 Just to literally

01:47:40.580 sit there and watch me.

01:47:42.200 My therapist,

01:47:42.940 the non-profits

01:47:44.380 that stepped in

01:47:46.020 and helped my family

01:47:47.020 and became friends

01:47:48.200 with my family

01:47:48.920 before I even

01:47:49.640 woke up.

01:47:51.540 So just,

01:47:53.120 you know,

01:47:53.460 it started on the

01:47:54.260 battlefield,

01:47:55.180 but I am

01:47:56.880 where I am

01:47:57.620 and who I am

01:47:58.500 because of so many

01:48:00.300 incredible people

01:48:02.280 that the reason

01:48:04.080 I joined,

01:48:05.280 you know,

01:48:05.540 they're serving

01:48:06.400 a greater purpose

01:48:07.440 in something

01:48:08.180 other than themselves

01:48:09.520 or one individual.

01:48:10.500 And so I have

01:48:12.100 chills right now.

01:48:12.780 I mean,

01:48:13.100 all those people

01:48:14.360 not even knowing me

01:48:16.580 or not even knowing

01:48:17.940 if I was going to survive

01:48:19.360 did all of that

01:48:21.240 to just keep,

01:48:23.140 you know,

01:48:23.900 little Lance Corporal

01:48:25.320 Carpenter,

01:48:26.220 you know,

01:48:26.840 alive.

01:48:27.920 And just,

01:48:28.880 it's just,

01:48:30.000 it's been such a journey.

01:48:31.880 Good,

01:48:32.520 bad,

01:48:33.600 extremely hard,

01:48:35.680 extremely amazing.

01:48:36.660 It's just,

01:48:38.180 it's kind of hard

01:48:40.680 to convey,

01:48:41.600 honestly.

01:48:42.720 Yeah,

01:48:42.880 I imagine.

01:48:44.600 What,

01:48:45.100 what are your goals

01:48:46.980 and ambitions

01:48:47.540 with your bonus round?

01:48:50.620 Well,

01:48:52.580 you know,

01:48:54.620 kind of looking ahead

01:48:55.740 towards the short term,

01:48:57.340 I want to continue

01:48:59.520 making my book

01:49:00.620 that I've worked

01:49:01.660 so hard on

01:49:02.580 to perfect,

01:49:03.860 making that a priority

01:49:04.920 and pushing that

01:49:07.040 because,

01:49:08.460 you know,

01:49:08.900 I had to recover,

01:49:10.320 get on with my life,

01:49:11.400 become financially independent,

01:49:13.700 you know,

01:49:14.620 way before

01:49:15.440 the medal occurred.

01:49:17.780 You know,

01:49:18.040 I was in the middle

01:49:19.320 of my sophomore year

01:49:20.460 at the University

01:49:21.060 of South Carolina

01:49:21.880 when I got the call

01:49:23.300 from the president

01:49:23.940 and I found out

01:49:24.700 I was going to be

01:49:25.140 awarded the Medal of Honor.

01:49:25.900 Yeah,

01:49:26.040 was it four years?

01:49:27.000 Is that the timeline?

01:49:28.060 Correct.

01:49:28.220 Four years from that date

01:49:30.380 that you found out

01:49:32.040 or were awarded?

01:49:32.780 I got injured in November

01:49:33.740 and I received the medal

01:49:35.320 in June of 2014.

01:49:38.340 But,

01:49:38.760 you know,

01:49:39.000 with all that said,

01:49:40.340 I'm so thankful

01:49:41.160 the chips fell the way they did

01:49:42.860 and the timeline

01:49:43.540 worked out the way it did

01:49:44.780 because,

01:49:45.620 you know,

01:49:46.940 I'm not financially motivated.

01:49:48.920 I know selling copies

01:49:50.300 comes with a good book

01:49:52.540 that you want people to read.

01:49:53.720 Sure.

01:49:54.120 But I truly just wrote it

01:49:55.640 to help people

01:49:57.000 and to take

01:49:58.880 all the silver linings

01:50:02.540 and the perspective

01:50:03.340 through the good,

01:50:04.940 bad,

01:50:05.460 and ugly,

01:50:07.060 the lessons I learned

01:50:08.100 through those long,

01:50:09.320 dark,

01:50:09.660 hard nights

01:50:10.280 and,

01:50:11.340 you know,

01:50:12.840 convert them into

01:50:13.740 a terminology

01:50:14.500 and lessons that

01:50:15.520 anyone and everyone

01:50:16.640 can understand.

01:50:18.000 So,

01:50:18.440 in the short term,

01:50:19.460 you know,

01:50:20.260 I want to,

01:50:22.200 through my speaking

01:50:23.140 that I've already done,

01:50:24.420 I've been doing,

01:50:25.600 and now this book,

01:50:27.000 continue to hopefully

01:50:28.120 impact and

01:50:29.320 connect with people.

01:50:30.700 and I think

01:50:32.660 in the long run,

01:50:34.260 I'm not exactly sure.

01:50:37.460 My journey has been

01:50:38.820 interesting,

01:50:40.400 to say the least,

01:50:41.500 and many

01:50:43.360 giant and

01:50:45.320 unexpected turns.

01:50:48.000 But,

01:50:48.660 you know,

01:50:49.480 a very low point for me

01:50:50.580 that I discuss in the book,

01:50:52.240 you know,

01:50:53.840 I came to a point

01:50:54.940 where I realized,

01:50:55.920 okay,

01:50:57.560 I might not know

01:50:58.760 where I'm headed,

01:51:01.000 what I'm doing,

01:51:02.800 I might not even know

01:51:04.660 what 12 hours from now

01:51:06.260 holds.

01:51:08.040 But,

01:51:08.740 you know,

01:51:09.200 I got kind of into this

01:51:10.480 routine of telling myself

01:51:12.040 every day,

01:51:13.080 I might not know

01:51:14.860 what I'm doing,

01:51:15.680 but

01:51:16.000 I work hard,

01:51:20.500 treat people right,

01:51:22.880 try to do the right thing,

01:51:24.320 and just keep taking,

01:51:27.080 you know,

01:51:27.400 that one

01:51:28.020 small step,

01:51:30.180 one after the other,

01:51:31.940 you know,

01:51:32.360 I can't go wrong,

01:51:33.700 and it's got to take me

01:51:34.560 somewhere.

01:51:35.920 And so,

01:51:36.800 I've kind of just

01:51:38.000 stuck to that,

01:51:39.000 and

01:51:39.280 I kind of

01:51:40.280 take,

01:51:41.180 take things

01:51:42.660 as they come,

01:51:43.500 and just go with the flow,

01:51:44.760 and try to do

01:51:45.560 the best

01:51:46.380 with what I have.

01:51:47.760 But,

01:51:48.580 you know,

01:51:48.860 like I was saying,

01:51:49.680 when it's all said and done,

01:51:51.980 I just want

01:51:55.200 for myself

01:51:56.160 to live a life

01:51:57.220 well lived,

01:51:58.680 and

01:51:59.240 for others

01:52:01.460 to

01:52:02.400 look at my life

01:52:05.300 as

01:52:07.040 not an example

01:52:08.240 of

01:52:08.720 how to be a good person,

01:52:10.520 or a hard worker,

01:52:11.380 anything like that,

01:52:12.440 because I would be

01:52:13.060 the last person to,

01:52:14.260 you know,

01:52:14.640 claim on those things.

01:52:15.740 but

01:52:17.480 and tying in with the book,

01:52:21.560 you know,

01:52:22.300 take me

01:52:23.540 and my story,

01:52:25.260 my name,

01:52:27.360 you know,

01:52:27.980 the Marine Corps,

01:52:28.780 anything you want

01:52:29.560 that defines my story,

01:52:31.320 take it away.

01:52:33.380 With my life

01:52:34.480 and with this book,

01:52:35.440 what I want is

01:52:36.720 people to just see,

01:52:41.980 realize,

01:52:42.840 and understand

01:52:43.800 what the human spirit

01:52:47.940 can go through,

01:52:49.820 and how hard

01:52:51.320 you can

01:52:55.300 get knocked down, 0.83

01:52:57.540 and you truly can

01:52:59.740 come back better

01:53:00.840 and stronger.

01:53:02.620 Now,

01:53:02.760 you might be a little different

01:53:03.940 physically,

01:53:04.700 mentally,

01:53:05.000 or emotionally,

01:53:05.760 and that's absolutely okay,

01:53:07.260 but that you can

01:53:08.640 truly come back

01:53:09.940 better and stronger

01:53:12.420 than you were

01:53:14.160 before,

01:53:14.880 whatever it was

01:53:15.580 that knocked you down.

01:53:17.720 So,

01:53:18.340 I can't believe

01:53:19.180 like some of the things

01:53:20.120 that I've

01:53:21.720 been through

01:53:22.640 and gone through

01:53:23.440 and it's still

01:53:23.920 very surreal,

01:53:25.140 but at the same time,

01:53:27.460 I have surprised myself,

01:53:30.400 you know,

01:53:30.640 when I crossed the finish line

01:53:31.720 of that marathon

01:53:32.320 with tears in my eyes

01:53:33.660 because,

01:53:34.900 you know,

01:53:35.100 when I couldn't even

01:53:35.700 sit up in the bed,

01:53:36.700 I had that goal,

01:53:39.680 and yeah,

01:53:40.280 it's amazing

01:53:40.760 to do a marathon

01:53:41.580 and that's crazy,

01:53:43.540 but to set that goal

01:53:44.980 in the worst shape

01:53:46.380 of my life,

01:53:48.340 mentally and physically

01:53:49.220 and emotionally,

01:53:50.680 breathing through a tube,

01:53:53.060 my dad's having

01:53:54.120 to hold

01:53:55.280 a bedpan under me

01:53:56.940 while six

01:53:58.060 to eight

01:53:58.640 people

01:53:59.580 held,

01:54:00.880 you know,

01:54:01.120 medical staff

01:54:01.800 held all my tubes

01:54:02.920 so I could lift up

01:54:03.980 and go to the bathroom, 0.93

01:54:05.520 like from that

01:54:06.380 to crossing the finish line

01:54:08.200 of a marathon,

01:54:09.360 you know,

01:54:09.560 take me out of it,

01:54:10.620 people.

01:54:11.680 Just look at,

01:54:13.140 you know,

01:54:14.120 what you can,

01:54:14.980 what you can make it through

01:54:16.520 and what you can survive

01:54:17.780 and not only survive

01:54:19.240 but come through,

01:54:21.220 maybe change,

01:54:22.360 but still smiling

01:54:23.440 on the other side.

01:54:25.960 It's powerful, man.

01:54:27.480 I know you're going

01:54:28.100 to change people's lives.

01:54:29.300 I know you're going to inspire,

01:54:30.100 you're inspiring me right now

01:54:31.560 and the people

01:54:32.100 who are listening,

01:54:32.580 I know are inspired.

01:54:34.240 Thanks, man.

01:54:35.240 I want to ask you

01:54:36.080 a couple of questions

01:54:36.960 as we wind down.

01:54:38.160 The first one is,

01:54:39.100 what does it mean

01:54:39.600 to be a man?

01:54:42.360 What does it mean

01:54:43.460 to be a man?

01:54:50.460 I think

01:54:51.420 what it means

01:54:52.300 to be a man

01:54:53.200 is

01:54:57.980 being true

01:54:59.540 to yourself.

01:55:00.240 and I think

01:55:03.200 if you're true

01:55:10.380 to yourself,

01:55:13.740 that,

01:55:19.500 you know,

01:55:21.960 obviously,

01:55:22.560 being true to yourself,

01:55:23.840 understanding your faults,

01:55:25.200 being able to work on those,

01:55:26.520 and always striving

01:55:28.580 to be

01:55:30.680 better,

01:55:32.300 not only for yourself,

01:55:33.760 but equally as much

01:55:35.160 for those around you.

01:55:37.740 You know,

01:55:37.880 when you,

01:55:38.560 I can't even imagine,

01:55:40.300 I can only,

01:55:41.400 you know,

01:55:41.680 see how my dad

01:55:42.660 and my parents were,

01:55:43.980 you know,

01:55:44.240 throughout my life.

01:55:45.140 I can't even speak for

01:55:46.600 or imagine,

01:55:48.120 you know,

01:55:48.560 the depth

01:55:51.480 that that continues

01:55:52.580 to go

01:55:53.140 when you have

01:55:53.960 a family of your own.

01:55:55.080 but

01:55:56.960 for me right now,

01:55:59.040 being true to myself

01:56:00.720 and

01:56:03.140 always striving

01:56:04.680 to sharpen

01:56:09.260 my own blade,

01:56:11.040 whether that is

01:56:12.820 working to be,

01:56:15.340 you know,

01:56:16.660 more honest,

01:56:19.620 you know,

01:56:19.980 more humble,

01:56:21.240 working to appreciate

01:56:22.760 people more,

01:56:24.920 you know,

01:56:25.420 to

01:56:25.880 not

01:56:28.580 walk past

01:56:30.020 an opportunity

01:56:30.680 to help someone

01:56:31.700 or be kind

01:56:32.440 to someone.

01:56:37.700 That's a really

01:56:38.900 great question,

01:56:39.800 man,

01:56:40.020 but I think

01:56:40.580 it really starts

01:56:41.420 with

01:56:41.760 looking at yourself

01:56:44.320 in the mirror,

01:56:45.260 cutting out the noise,

01:56:46.360 and really

01:56:47.600 thinking,

01:56:48.720 you know,

01:56:51.140 what is going

01:56:52.820 to

01:56:54.820 enrich

01:56:59.140 and better

01:56:59.680 my life

01:57:00.500 and how am I

01:57:02.000 going to be

01:57:02.420 better

01:57:02.820 for other people

01:57:04.500 in a non-tangible

01:57:05.840 way?

01:57:07.820 I love it.

01:57:08.860 I love it.

01:57:09.420 It's powerful.

01:57:10.720 All right,

01:57:11.020 brother,

01:57:11.380 how do we pick up

01:57:12.040 a copy of the book?

01:57:12.980 How do we connect

01:57:13.660 with you?

01:57:14.380 Where do we go?

01:57:15.880 So,

01:57:16.740 all major platforms,

01:57:18.460 Harper Collins,

01:57:20.120 who is my publisher,

01:57:21.140 you can get it

01:57:21.600 from their website,

01:57:23.160 Amazon,

01:57:24.040 Barnes & Noble,

01:57:25.440 and if you

01:57:27.380 don't feel like

01:57:28.520 reading it,

01:57:29.700 I think you're

01:57:30.480 missing out a little bit,

01:57:31.700 but if you don't feel

01:57:32.360 like reading it,

01:57:33.080 I actually read

01:57:35.180 the audio book,

01:57:36.160 so you can pick

01:57:36.960 that up as well.

01:57:38.220 If you have a Kindle

01:57:39.020 or even,

01:57:40.640 you know,

01:57:41.040 your iPhone

01:57:41.540 with iBooks on it,

01:57:43.040 you cannot get it

01:57:43.820 anywhere,

01:57:44.140 but it'll be out

01:57:45.060 October 15th,

01:57:47.480 and if you don't

01:57:48.560 like it,

01:57:49.020 just don't give me

01:57:49.820 a review.

01:57:50.820 That's right.

01:57:51.600 You will like it,

01:57:52.680 though.

01:57:52.820 I can guarantee

01:57:53.780 that.

01:57:55.480 I'm looking at the

01:57:56.340 time here.

01:57:57.180 We've gone for

01:57:57.940 almost two hours.

01:57:59.280 Nice.

01:57:59.560 I think this is

01:58:00.640 the longest podcast

01:58:02.220 officially that I've

01:58:03.160 ever done.

01:58:03.980 Well,

01:58:04.220 thank you very much.

01:58:05.300 But I wanted

01:58:07.200 to be that

01:58:07.900 because I'm

01:58:08.840 inspired by

01:58:09.480 who you are

01:58:10.160 and your story,

01:58:11.980 and I don't even

01:58:12.840 like saying

01:58:13.320 your story,

01:58:14.900 your life,

01:58:15.780 your experiences.

01:58:17.200 I'm inspired

01:58:18.220 by who you are,

01:58:19.300 what you've done.

01:58:20.300 I thank you

01:58:20.800 for your service

01:58:21.500 to the country,

01:58:23.100 to your brothers

01:58:23.800 there.

01:58:24.480 Yeah,

01:58:24.900 absolutely.

01:58:26.100 And just taking

01:58:26.680 time to share

01:58:27.520 something very

01:58:28.380 personal,

01:58:29.260 and in a lot of

01:58:30.280 ways,

01:58:30.800 very challenging,

01:58:31.620 I imagine,

01:58:32.080 for you as well.

01:58:33.440 So I just want

01:58:34.060 to let you know

01:58:34.440 I really appreciate

01:58:35.200 you and of course

01:58:35.800 your friendship as

01:58:36.480 well.

01:58:36.860 Thank you very

01:58:37.440 much,

01:58:37.820 Ryan.

01:58:38.140 It's been a

01:58:39.480 pleasure.

01:58:41.180 Again,

01:58:41.820 thank you for

01:58:42.320 this opportunity.

01:58:43.900 And we've only

01:58:44.880 met recently,

01:58:45.880 so I look forward

01:58:46.580 to many more.

01:58:47.620 We're going to

01:58:47.820 get you up to

01:58:48.280 Maine.

01:58:48.660 Yeah,

01:58:49.120 get up to Maine

01:58:49.880 and many more

01:58:51.100 epic adventures.

01:58:52.160 Absolutely.

01:58:52.920 All right,

01:58:53.260 brother.

01:58:53.460 Thank you.

01:58:55.420 Gentlemen,

01:58:55.920 there you go.

01:58:56.300 My conversation

01:58:57.000 with the one

01:58:57.480 and only Kyle

01:58:58.340 Carpenter.

01:58:59.220 I think that you

01:59:00.200 probably heard in

01:59:01.000 this conversation

01:59:01.720 exactly what I did

01:59:03.060 and you're walking

01:59:03.620 away with a new

01:59:04.960 perspective about

01:59:05.820 what it means to

01:59:06.680 be a man,

01:59:07.420 a new perspective

01:59:08.160 about what it

01:59:09.440 means to sacrifice

01:59:10.400 and our role and

01:59:11.560 responsibility as

01:59:12.560 protectors and

01:59:13.600 providers and

01:59:14.280 presiders.

01:59:14.880 And if Kyle

01:59:15.780 doesn't espouse

01:59:16.340 those virtues that

01:59:17.020 we talk quite a bit

01:59:17.780 about,

01:59:18.760 I don't know who

01:59:19.420 does.

01:59:20.080 So if you would

01:59:21.020 make sure you

01:59:21.580 support him,

01:59:22.380 connect with him

01:59:22.900 on social media,

01:59:23.900 pick up a copy of

01:59:24.620 the book,

01:59:24.980 you were worth

01:59:25.460 it.

01:59:26.000 Building a life

01:59:26.920 worth fighting for,

01:59:27.800 you are not going

01:59:28.620 to be disappointed.

01:59:29.880 Of course,

01:59:30.340 we've talked a lot

01:59:30.980 about some of the

01:59:31.560 stories in that book,

01:59:33.400 but we didn't go

01:59:34.240 through everything.

01:59:35.000 So if you're

01:59:35.340 interested in hearing

01:59:36.040 more and you want

01:59:37.260 to know how Kyle

01:59:38.100 is building up his

01:59:39.060 life and serving

01:59:40.020 others and really

01:59:41.360 striving to be the

01:59:42.180 best man that he can

01:59:43.000 be, then you'll

01:59:44.020 definitely be interested

01:59:44.740 in picking up a copy

01:59:45.600 of that book.

01:59:46.640 So we'll leave you

01:59:48.040 with that today.

01:59:48.820 Again, connect with

01:59:49.500 him, connect with

01:59:50.360 myself on Instagram,

01:59:51.560 Twitter, Facebook,

01:59:52.180 wherever you're

01:59:52.940 doing the social

01:59:54.400 media thing.

01:59:55.420 This video, if you

01:59:56.640 are interested in

01:59:57.420 seeing the video of

01:59:58.120 Kyle and I is on

01:59:59.360 YouTube, you can

02:00:00.440 head to youtube.com

02:00:02.400 slash order of man

02:00:04.460 and you'll find us

02:00:05.700 there, youtube.com

02:00:06.640 slash order of man

02:00:07.580 and you'll be able

02:00:07.980 to check that video

02:00:08.700 out.

02:00:09.360 Hope you enjoyed

02:00:09.860 this one.

02:00:10.480 Please give us

02:00:11.040 some feedback.

02:00:11.640 Let us know what

02:00:12.160 you thought about

02:00:12.620 the show.

02:00:13.460 Let us know what

02:00:13.880 you think about the

02:00:14.460 book and we'll let

02:00:16.000 you get going for

02:00:16.600 the day.

02:00:17.020 Guys, I really

02:00:17.620 appreciate you being

02:00:18.360 on this journey and

02:00:19.020 this path of reclaiming

02:00:20.900 and restoring what

02:00:21.600 it means to be a

02:00:22.220 man.

02:00:22.660 We could not do

02:00:23.500 this without you

02:00:24.140 and I'm honored to

02:00:24.840 be in the battle

02:00:25.280 with you.

02:00:26.120 All right, guys, go

02:00:26.840 out there, take

02:00:27.400 action, become the

02:00:28.380 man you are meant

02:00:29.580 to be.

02:00:30.040 Thank you for

02:00:30.620 listening to the

02:00:31.220 Order of Man podcast.

02:00:32.960 If you're ready to

02:00:33.500 take charge of your

02:00:34.260 life and be more of

02:00:35.400 the man you were

02:00:36.040 meant to be, we

02:00:37.160 invite you to join

02:00:37.920 the order at

02:00:38.760 orderofman.com.

Order of Man - October 08, 2019

Above and Beyond the Call of Duty with Medal of Honor Recipient, KYLE CARPENTER

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