Most of RAP week is sitting around, or when not “sitting” atleast hanging out and getting “smoked” (doing physical activity) by the RIs. Dueto the physical nature of the events they space them out. So our second eventof the first day, the Combat Water Survival Assessment (CWSA) wasn’t untillater in the afternoon. That meant we got breakfast in the chow hall and LOTsof “sitting around.” In the afternoon, which was cloudy and cool, we formed upand jogged the mile or so (not sure how far it actually is) down to the pond. Iran in the back with a buddy of mine, another older prior enlisted guy, and inno small way greatly anticipated the upcoming task. I don’t have a problem withwater, even though freezing cold water is not really my favorite place to hangout. No, my problem I must confess is that I’m an Airborne Ranger who’s scaredof heights. Yup. Terrified. So the shaking in my knees before climbing thethirty foot ladder to the balance beam was actually mostly attributed to allthe images screaming through my head of looking down at the water and fallingoff. To make it even better we had to negotiate the first obstacle, walk acrossthe beam, step up on to a two-step box and back down the other side and finishwalking across the beam with a natural stride while looking unafraid. To methat seems like a great opportunity for subjective translation, and I was justas afraid that an RI would make me do it again as I was I would fall off. Afterthe beam one was expected to climb up on to a horizontal rope and pull, handover hand, 10 or so feet out to a wooden Ranger tab. From there the victim isto hang free, palms back in a chin-up fashion, and request permission to drop.If the indifferent RI on the ground is feeling generous, or even paying enoughattention to hear, then he may likely grant permission at which point the dupefalls 30+ feet in to freezing water. Fun right? Especially for a wimp like mewho, again, is petrified by heights.
Needless to say, I did a lot more praying that first day.When we arrived at the CWSA site they put us in bleachers for a demonstration,so we KNEW how bad this thing was going to suck. Then they lined us up likecattle for the slaughter, in ranks with our backs to the pond but close enoughto hear the thud/splash as Rangers went before us. I was about halfway in the s-foldformation so I had what was at least an eternity if not a lifetime tocontemplate my decision to come to RS, join the Infantry, or walk away from anice comfy life in academia doing math problems. Surprisingly, though, as mytime neared I felt less and less like I was readying to climb the gallows. Infact, as I stepped up to climb the ladder a jolt of calm/courage (two differentthings, I’ll try and better ID/define them through the course of this blog)came through me. As I mounted the ladder and climbed I felt… prepared. And whileI was NERVOUS at the top, I was not terrified. I made it across with noproblem, got on the rope, got permission to drop (the RI didn’t seem to know Iwas even there until I yelled at him) and plummeted in to the freezing waterwithout incident. In fact, the biggest problem I ran in to was almost drinkingthe entire pond as I sucked in from shock of just how COLD that pond was!
Coming up for air wasin some way like coming out of the baptismal pool. I felt… well I felt COLD,but I also felt rejuvenated. I had just been carried through my greatest fear,and if at any point I had a doubt that God would be with me on this crazyjourney it was gone. I knocked out the equipment ditch and swim (again, fine inwater just don’t like heights) then hopped out and grabbed the zip-linehandle/bar-and-wheel-thingy (official nomenclature I’m sure) prior to joggingup to the tower. I’m pretty sure the recycle working that station thought I waseither nuts or having fun or both, if only I could have told him! My prayers asI mounted the stairs, having completed the same three cycle sequence, wheretotally of thanksgiving. The next, and final, event was a 70ish (?) foot zip-lineback in to the drink. I learned another valuable lesson. The prayer cycle wasnot one way. I could easily, and did then, go from “thanksgiving” back to “petition”as easily as stepping up and being told to dry off my hands and get ready tostep off. Yet again I was amazed at the peace God gave me as I mounted thatcrazy contraption, and on the way down I looked around and took the time toreally bask in His glory: it was amazing! Unfortunately I’d been so busypraying for help in dealing with heights I’d forgotten to ask for a little helpwith the sudden stop at the end. I wasn’t injured in any way, but I certainlyknew that had I not let go the alterative would have REALLY hurt.
After getting out ofthe water I was faced with another important lesson, one I wouldn’t fullyrealize or try and verbalize until much later (like mountains and swamps), butthe fact is even when cold and wet (and later tired and really hungry), nomatter WHAT “this too shall pass.” I went straight to the warming tent andchanged and as quickly as I was in a dry uniform I was warm again. That lessonis one that will (hopefully) stay with me for life. From there we munched onMRE lunches and back to Camp Rogers for more waiting around and some briefs.
(found this pic online: http://www.shadowspear.com/vb/threads/ranger-school-some-photos.3745/)
No comments:
Post a Comment