Returning to the civilian world

BY PAUL NASELLA STAFF WRITER PJN722@CABRINI EDU

Robert Miller was unsure of his future when he graduated from Ridley High School in June of 2000. He knew higher education was an option but felt that he lacked the discipline for it after 2 months of schooling. Then one day when he was out shopping when the army stepped into his life. “I was walking into some store near the army recruiter and he came out and talked to me. It sounded like a pretty good idea, like there was nothing bad that could come out of it…there’s good benefits and [it] sounded like a lot of fun, ya know, a lot of adventure. So, I joined.”

Once enlisted, Miller, 23, didn’t know what to expect. “I was a little nervous. I think everybody is. I didn’t know what to expect cause no matter how many people you talk to who have been in the service, ya never really know until you’re there.”

Miller was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia for basic training for nine weeks before being sent to Fort Mead, Maryland for Advanced Individual Training (AIT). He would finally be stationed at Fort Reilly, Kansas before being deployed to Kuwait and Iraq.

“I like training,” the former Sergeant E5 said. “Alot of people, they can’t stand it. But my mentality of the Army when I went in and the entire time I was there was that, the whole reason that we have a military is for national defense. Going to combat is the big dance, war is the big dance and when you’re actually doing training, you’re preparing for that and a lot of soldiers don’t understand that.”

Miller was deployed from Oct. 2002 to March 20, 2003 in Kuwait. On March 20, he moved north into Iraq. “March 20, which was the first day of the war, I moved forward into south Iraq with a unit from the British army.”

When he was told that he would have to go to Iraq and fight, Miller said, “the feelings you have, you’re very anxious, you’re nervous, and you’re excited.”

He also said that he was a little afraid after hearing the news, “You’re [also] a little scared because it’s the unknown. GI Joe said it best, ‘knowing’s half the battle’ and that’s the God’s honest truth because once you know, then you’re not really afraid anymore. But not knowing what you’re going into because it truly is like what you see on the movies [and] even on TV, but you’ll never understand what it is unless you’ve been there. Unless you’ve been to combat.”

And combat is something that Sergeant Miller knows all about. “I saw indirect fire, mortars, and seersucker missiles. There [was] always a lot of SCUDS, SCUD warnings, false alarms with gas, friendly artillery going right over your head. The direct fire things that I saw were snipers. I saw

2004-2005 Loquitur Staff

Editorial Staff direct fire on reconnaissance and patrols and once, on a raid, from about 10 feet away, I was fired at [by an enemy] with an [AK-47].”

However, throughout his entire ordeal in the service Miller said that his family was always supportive of him despite his decision to join. “My parents did not want me to join the service,” he said, but, “my parents were always behind me, they were always very supportive. Whether they wanted me there or not.”

“I mean, I came from a pretty decent family. My dad would have paid for me to go to college. I had a scholarship to play soccer at Kutztown and I just…I always did what I wanted to do and they weren’t very happy when I left for the army. Of course, they never said that. They were just like, ‘we support you in whatever you want to do. If this is the decision you want to make.’”

Since being discharged in Dec. of 2003, Robert Miller has had a tough time readjusting to what he refers to as the “civilianworld.” “It’s been really difficult the last two months,” he said, “It’s been pretty hard on me. I miss a lot of my buddies. I miss the atmosphere…the brotherhood and the camaraderie there and that is what I miss the most.”

Miller said that he left the service on his own accord. “I chose to get out of the army because one of my goals is to finish college. I want to finish school and get my degree. I have SOLDIER, page 4

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