The Few, the Proud, the Missed.....

Friday I boogied down to Wilmington NC to teach a couple of classes. The traffic was terrible on Highway 24 all the way from Morehead City right through Jacksonville. Finally I realized that not only were there a lot of cars on the road but I was weaving in and out of a military convoy. No wonder there were camo Humvees everywhere! The Kearsage Expeditionary Strike Group and the 22nd MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit) consisting of about 6,000 soldiers and sailors, was back from Iraq.

The closer I got to Jacksonville, the more homecoming signs appeared. Mostly these signs were painted bed sheets hung over any convenient fence bordering the highway. Some of the sign-makers obviously had scrap booking expertise and the sheet signs looked like pages from an album. Others, no less sincere, were hastily painted and hung. Along with human hand prints, one family also represented the family pet and Ashley, the dog, had her paw print in there!


A few of the signs were slightly racy in tone. One simply said, "Corporal Kline, you're mine!" The one here promises a very warm welcome to a lucky gunnery sergeant.