Army Wife by Vicki Cody

Author:Vicki Cody
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: She Writes Press
Published: 2016-06-28T04:00:00+00:00

15

A Time of Transition

In hindsight, I realize that when we left Fort Hood that summer of 1996, we were entering a time of transition. Dick had been selected to command the infamous 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR). It was the very unit that he and Ned had been part of back in 1980 and had helped form up, and that was built around the “little bird” helicopters that Dick had helped build. The unit that he had secretly followed and wanted to be part of since its inception had finally become a reality for him. But that command, more than any other, past or future, proved to be the most challenging that Dick had faced. I would like to tell you that he was the beloved commander he had always been and that all of his proven leadership skills worked, but that was not exactly how it played out. Maybe it was perceptions; after all, Dick had spent much of his career in the “green” Army and was considered an outsider by many in the regiment. Maybe it was the timing; it was just three years after the 160th SOAR had suffered huge losses in the battle of Mogadishu, Somalia—an operation that Dick had not been part of, which, again, made him an outsider. Maybe it was the fact that Dick was put in the position to bring about much-needed changes, a touchy subject for any unit. It could have been any or all of those reasons. And sometimes the very things we want the most just don’t live up to our expectations.

Soon after we moved to Fort Campbell and before Dick took command of the 160th SOAR, he had gone down to Fort Rucker to learn to fly the Blackhawk helicopter. He wasn’t due home for another week, so I was surprised one afternoon when I pulled into our driveway and saw him sitting on a cooler on our carport. Two thoughts hit me immediately: 1) something was really wrong, and 2) I had forgotten to give him a house key before he left for Fort Rucker. But then I saw the smug look on his face. He was smiling.

“Dick, what are you doing home? Is everything okay? How long have you been waiting?”

“I’ve been here about an hour.” Then he walked up to me and said, “Guess what? I’m on the promotion list for brigadier general! I decided to drive home and surprise you!”

“Are you kidding me? Really? You’re on the list?”

“Can you believe it?”

“Oh my God!”

I gave him a huge hug and whispered in his ear, “I’ve always wanted to sleep with a general!” (I had been saying that to him about every promotion since he’d become a lieutenant colonel.)

As we walked into the house, we immediately began discussing the implications. But then I looked at my watch and said, “Tyler won’t be home for at least an hour; we’ve got the house to ourselves . . . I’m thinking this definitely calls for a celebration.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” he said, as we walked down the hall to our bedroom.

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