I mentioned on a previous page that I had opted to go to a leadership corse, and left Fred Espy, a man that I had gone through basic training with, behind. I'm here to tell you that it was the hand of God that moved me to do that.
When I returned from R&R and got as far as LZ Sally. The last stop before going to Birmingham, it was just getting dark. I decided to go to the transit tent to grab a bunk and drop my stuff off before going to the mess hall. I went into the tent and saw someone sitting on one of the cots. I said hello to him and went on about my buisness. Then the guy said my name. I turned and saw that it was Fred. Boy was I surprised. So that was the end of chow, we started to catch up on the time we missed. As we talked I noticed a funny, haunted look about him. Something was wrong with him. I asked him where he was going and he said that he was on his way to C Btry. Great I said that's my Battery. I asked him where he came from and why he was transfered.
Fred then told me a horror story about fire base airborn. The base had been overrun and he was the only one to survive a satchel charge tossed into his bunker. Also he was one of the only ones that survived the attack at all. Fred was lucky that day. I can't help but think that I would have probably been on that fire base with Fred if I had not gone to that leadership corse. I wonder if I would have been as lucky. I went to see him a few years after we got out.
He still had that same haunted look about him.
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