Day 19/31 of my career. Christmas. A special time of the year in the Army, whether at home or abroad. In garrison, it is referred to as the Silly Season, where the flurry of social activities makes the last couple weeks before starting your Christmas leave a blur. Traditions like the Officer-Senior Non-Commissioned Officer hockey game, Mens Christmas Dinner (that evolved into the Soldiers Christmas Dinner, then to the Festive Dinner) where officers and Sr NCOs serve a great turkey dinner to the soldiers. The Commanding Officer and the youngest Trooper/Private exchange uniforms while the Regimental Sergeant-Major does the same with the oldest Master-Corporal. Normally the Acting CO makes the call at the end of the dinner that we are stood down for Christmas (please use a designated driver). The officers and Sr NCOs also alternate hosting each other at their respective messes. A large mess bill, larger head, and the need to send your uniform to the dry cleaners is a fallout of this popular Happy Hour. Units always run great Christmas parties for the kids. Gifts, food, and of course Santa. I can still remember how excited Amanda and Amy were when Santa arrived on a tank! I have spent two Christmases away from my family. Work is a little quieter, we normally started late on Christmas Day and spelled the troops off on front gate duty for Christmas and/or New Years Eve. Same great turkey dinner, lots of shortbread cookies from home, a couple beer and a visit from Santa. Santa Keith Whelan and his Elf Steve Mercer filled the bill in Bosnia in 1994. In 2010, I had a crew of great guys, most of which never spent Christmas away from home. When not pumping iron, Frankie decorated the office, Martin, Paul, ScottandHelen Gillingham and the rest of the gang organized a great party where we exchanged gifts. We laughed our asses off for hours, including joking around with the infamous pickle-in-a-bag that became the standard gift for everyone in our shop. It got quiet later and we all faded back to our rooms to think about our families, wishing that we could be with them on Christmas.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 12:25:55 +0000
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