No One Parades like Marines (176)

This will not be news to most of my readership, maybe no one but it is a fact, when it comes to Parades and doing it flawless, you better have Marines....

And two weeks ago today Gunny Bill and I arrived in Wash. DC for a reunion of "Togetherweserved.com". We went a couple days early to spend time organizing a reunion for our old boot camp Platoon for next August 2010...And lucky for us as shown in the first pic at right was the last parade of the season at the Marine Iwo Jima Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery...
I guess they normally stop them sooner in August but they had a rain date to make up or something like that...Some dignitary did not get their parade and wanted one...So they got it and we were lucky to have seen it...Of the two excellent Parades by the Men and Officers of 8th and I Marine Barracks DC, I must tell you this one was by far the most enjoyable...Probably because it is still very light as it is a "Sunset" Parade...Happens on Tuesday evening in early summer I guess...

But with the Iwo Memorial with its 35 foot tall statues of the 6 men, and Raising of the Flag on Mt. Sarabatche, Iwo Jima as a back drop, I mean what a great place for Marines to Parade, it can not be beat, we loved it and thanks to M/Sgt. Hunter and his men we found our way into the bleacher seats as the dignitaries did not need all of them. The Band was good, the music was great the Marines paraded flawlessly and the silent drill team was both silent of commands but their execution of there movements were bold and crisp....Those M-1 rifles with chrome bayonets attached being tossed end over end back and forth to each other are something to behold. The posting of colors and seeing the battle flag of the Marines entrusted to the 8th and I Marines was great...I must say again "no one does it better" than these guys and when given the command "order arms" and maybe a couple hundred rifle butts hitting the deck with one crisp pop in the time of a mila-second, it to one who appreciates the effort put forth, sends chills down the spine....

These officers and enlisted at 8th and I do parades very well but their jobs around DC area are many. They train much on riot control for the DC area and we hope that will never happen but sure they have a plan if it should. And they are charged with ceremonial duties around town including the white house detail and the Marine funerals at Arlington...All in all they are busy, very busy when you consider these many duties and these precision parades they do so well.

Again on Friday night we witnessed these same Marines maybe even more of them parading as they do most Friday nights all summer long through August at the 8th and I Marine Barracks. It is located close to the Capitol and is maybe the oldest Marine Base built in 1801...It also was a great parade but for it with our large group we ended up in the end zone area opposite the commandants house....Not as good a place to view that parade as the seats I had 6 years ago when I saw it for the first time with my wife and 3 grand daughters...But still very nice, pictures are not as good as it is dark before it starts..But again a great parade by greater paraders....

Now the last pic is a keepsake from my trip...and it is cool and not hot and I must explain. We were privileged to get to eat with the Marines in the chow hall before the parade. The meal was excellent by my standards of what I remember marine meals to be....some said it was so so, but I remember those days and believe me by those standards it was very excellent...Well anyway back to the subject the tray, the mess sargeant said he had a few scratched trays that no longer were fit for service and we could have one if we liked...Most of us jumped on that offer, why not.
Anyway the bus drivers offered to collect them and put them in the busses till the parade was over...Most allowed that to happen, me I chose to hang on to mine, I guess I was afraid it would just not get back to me later...Carried it into the parade grounds as did maybe a good 50 others.
Settled in for the parade on the top row of the endzone seats and a Master Sargeant gets our attention down front and holds up a tray he had taken from one of our members. He states loudly that these trays are Marine Corps property and "we want them back no questions asked"...So most of them were passed forward and collected and returned to the mess hall...except for one, it stayed between my legs out of sight. A Marine next to me said are you keeping that and I said, "well I am gonna try cause it was given to me and I think there is a mixup here for sure, will take my chances"....After the parade I walked out the gate with it under my arm in sight of some of the Marines...I made it out without a challenge, so I have my keepsake of the 8th and I visit..Not sure what the hell I will do with it, maybe when I make SOS why I will just get it out and put it on that tray and enjoy it...Maybe steak and eggs on Sunday or maybe I will just hang it on a wall somewhere....It is a nice tray.....

Semper Fi,

Jack

OH a PS is in order here...Today is the anniversary of my last birthday two years ago when I reached 69...So I guess you could say I'm 69 and 24 months or you could say I am just waiting on others to catch up...More importantly, one year from today our platoon 3002 San Diego/1956 will begin our reunion in DC doing about the same stuff I did last week..it will be fun....