Navy Stories Episode 1: The Introduction
September 10th, 2008 by Ben Moreno
’)Important: The stories you are about to read are non-fiction. They are real events that actually happened in my life. I will try to keep as close to the actual events as my memory will permit. Also, the statement and opinions expressed in these writings are that of my own and in no way reflect the opinions of or the policies of the U.S. Navy.
What I am writing?
I am in no way a professional writer. I am writing this simply because I enjoy writing about Navy life and because I get to kind of re-live my experiences. I have also found that people enjoy hearing stories about military experience. I spent 3 years and 8 months in active duty in the U.S. Navy. I first did a 3 year tour on a ship and then got activated from the reserves to do 6 months of duty in Kuwait.
I got out at the end of 2004 so it has been some time and a lot of partying since my Navy days. Let us hope my memories still remain in tact. So without further ado, I give you Navy Stories. My first non-fiction writing project. I hope you enjoy it.
The Decision To Join
For as long as I can remember I wanted to be a Navy SEAL. I think it is because of a combination of reasons. Both my father and brother were in the Army and they both are really into sports. My father always talked to me about being somebody big and being my own man. I wanted to to do something to top them and to impress them so, I joined the Navy to become a S.E.A.L.
I remember thinking that Navy SEALs are the best of the best and that is what I want to be.
Notes: SEAL is an acronym for SEa. Air and Land. Which means they can run operations and attack the enemy from any geographical area or terrain. Navy SEALs are the most elite military special forces unit in the world. They have the most difficult training known 
to man. The SEALs are trained to never quit no matter what. This philosophy of strength in the individual makes them virtually unstoppable as a team.
I don’t remember the exact date I told my parents about joining the Navy but I know It was sometime during my junior year of high school. My mom was not too happy about it but she wouldn’t tell me not to go. My sisters were concerned but it was peace time at the time. My brother was always a little tough on me and I remember my brother saying, “So you want to be a bad ass huh? When you get back I am just going to kick your ass. Just to show you how bad ass you aren’t. Hahaha!”
I remember telling my dad that I wanted to go to the Navy to become a SEAL. He gave me a lecture about the military and agreed that I should go if that is what I really wanted to do. My father was drafted into the Army for 2 years during the Vietnam era. He explained to me the difference between wanting to go, and being drafted, but I was very determined at that time to become the best so I did not care.
One day the recruiters came to my school and gave some speeches and walked around talking to the students and went ahead I enlisted during my junior year of high school. I joined the early enlistment program so I would be ready to go as soon as I graduated.
The Recruiter’s
Those recruiters really sock it to you with the motivational speeches and bullshit, but when you are young they are very impressive people. They will pretty much tell you anything to get you in.
When I went to the recruiter’s office he showed me various videos of Navy SEAL training to show me how hard it was. The videos showed them holding boats over their heads and running ridiculous distances. They did tons of different calisthenics and really tough training procedures. They showed them infiltrating and taking over buildings, etc. I was not deterred by the training. I felt like I would be able to handle it. The recruiter was surprised at how determined I was to be a SEAL. He said that most of the people he shows the videos change their mind right away.
I had been approached by other recruiters from different branches before but I chose the Navy instead. It was entertaining watching the recruiters argue that their branch of service was the best. The Navy recruiters used Bo Jackson to help sell the idea saying, “Did you know Bo Jackson flew for the Blue Angels?!”. They had posters of him on the wall in their office.
After the initial paper work I received a little white id. card saying that I was in the early enlistment program. I was showing it off at school thinking I was all bad because I was going to the Navy.
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Stay tuned for the next episode where I explain the grueling process of joining the Navy and going to boot camp.
