On June 19th, 2008, God needed a boost to his Heavenly Security Forces and called up Marine Captain Eric Terhune for eternal duty...no, that won't do....
I've come up with a dozen or more lines to write to share the nearly 3 and a half year old news that a buddy of mine died while fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan. None of them work when I see them in black and white. Terhune was a real Marine. Our lives crossed paths at Officer Candidate School in the summer of 2000 in Quantico, Virginia. He was an enlisted marine at the time, most of the rest of us were college juniors. He was real. He slept in the bunk above the one next to me for ten weeks. He was strong as an ox and used to amaze us with his handstand push-ups. Not like some stupid cross-fit shit with back and feet up against a wall, but real, up on his hands, arms extended, in the middle of the barracks, legs providing all the balance he needed, rep after rep. He was a scout sniper. He had his SSN tattooed on his torso. We got to know each other as well as guys can when they're constantly sleep deprived.
Andrea is running the Soldier Half Marathon on Saturday in Columbus, Georgia and advised that they had an option to run for a fallen hero. I was curious about it and followed the link here:
http://www.militarytimes.com/valor/. At the moment, I could only recall a few names from 11 years ago. Terhune was the third one I typed in. Sutter - no results returned. Sibley - no results returned. Terhune - his picture and obituary. Shock. Sadness. I really didn't think that it would be him. Proof that the enemy doesn't care about the quality person they take out. Don't get me wrong, I know war is bad. I'm not naive enough to glorify it, regardless of the reason for it. I'm also not naive enough to think that this hits me nearly as hard as his family and friends, more recent and intimate than 11 years ago. All the same, it brings a face and name to the conflicts our Country is engaged in across the world, for reasons unapparent to many, including myself. So, on Saturday, Eric D. Terhune, Captain, USMC, will be represented in the Soldier Half Marathon.
Finn asked me who he was. It took me a couple minutes to compose myself before I was able to respond..."He was a Marine who died two weeks before you were born."
Later last night, I got out my papers from OCS and typed in the names of every other candidate from my Platoon. He was the only one who showed up. At 34 years old, he was a Marine for almost half of his life. And, quite frankly, died doing what he loved doing...being a Marine, wearing the flag of the United States of America.
The next time I'm in Lexington, KY, I'm going to make the short drive to Nicholasville to the Camp Nelson National Cemetery, Section S, Site 516, to pay my respects. And maybe, by then, I'll be able to knock out some hand stand push-ups for his entertainment.
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