Standing in the All Too Familiar • The Havok Journal

There I stood, yet again, in an all too familiar place. I stood in the haunting echoes of Taps. I watched the flawless motions of the well-rehearsed tan berets. I watched those who could speak search for the impossible words to describe a life so full. I watched those who could not speak reflect upon the life lost. I watched yet another flag get folded. I watched yet another heart wrenching solute to a wife without a husband. I needed not hear the words shared, they were already all too familiar. To thank a family for their dedication and sacrifice to our country.

There I stood. Yet again. The all too familiar.

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Soldiers assigned to 1st Battalion, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) and a bugler from the U.S. Army Band, “Pershing’s Own,” conduct modified military funeral honors for U.S. Army Master Sgt. Nathan Goodman in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, July 23, 2020. A member of the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne), Goodman had served eight tours overseas, including four deployments to Afghanistan, once to Iraq, twice to Africa and once to Kyrgyzstan. He had been enlisted in the Army since July 2002. Goodman died January 14, 2020 during a routine free fall training exercise near Eloy, Arizona. Goodman’s spouse, Kelly Goodman, received the flag from his casket. (U.S. Army photo by Elizabeth Fraser / Arlington National Cemetery / released) Source.

Jake Smith is a law enforcement officer and former Army Ranger with four deployments to Afghanistan.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.