ARMY HATS AND GRAY HAIR


For 45 years I would not talk about my military service.  Not with my sons who asked me about it a number of times over the years.  Not with my closest friends.

I used to see gray haired men in the fast food establishments having breakfast with a cluster of friends, all with their caps denoting military service, and I would just nod my appreciation and smile at the thought that one day this would probably be me.

But, I never bought or wore a cap with military designation throughout the greater part of my adult life.  And I never had any desire to reminisce at all.  For some strange reason in the past couple of years, I have bought several of caps bearing the emblem of my branch of service and theater of service.  A few years ago, when my brother Ken and I would take one of our road trips, I began to bring up some of the memories and he would suffer several minutes of my trip back into the late 1960’s.  Two years ago I finally gave some insight to my sons of my worst moments while wearing our country’s uniform.

I have always had dreams, sometimes nightmares, about those days of my youth in the 1st Infantry Division.  Now it seems to be on my mind often in daylight hours, too. A lot.  And as often as not, when Sandy and I go out at night for a burger or pizza---or even when I just go out into the yard to do some mowing--I’ll reach past the St. Louis Cardinal caps and the University of Kentucky caps, the various fishing and whitewater hats, and don one of the four or five caps of military designation.

Is it something that just happens when all your hair turns gray?

 I don’t know if I’m just getting old, just becoming proud and vain…or just beginning to get well. 


Keith W. Ragan






10/27/2017 8:00 A.M.

Comments

  1. Keith RaganAugust 22, 2022 at 10:11 AM

    8/22/22 As a follow-up to this story, a few subsequent notes I would like to make on this story. This story got almost no response from the blog, and the responses that were registered from it occurred only after publishing it to Facebook. Still not many.

    I was fortunate to share this to a Vietnam Veterans group o FB, and got almost 3000 likes and almost as many comments so far. Vietnam vets related to this story in a big way. I was told by many that we wear the hat to recognize each other and welcome each other home. Not for any public recognition. It has made wearing my hats more meaningful and frequent.


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