My Basic Training Days Poem by Philip Lore

Back in the summer of '66,
Went to reception, welcome to Fort Dix.
Go off the bus and saw my first DI,
He sure was crazy and made some young guys cry.

They shaved my head,
My arms felt like lead.
They made us double time instead,
With our duffle bags held overhead.

They screamed at us all day,
They screamed at us, if we started to sway,
They screamed at us, till we shook with fright,
They screamed at us till they dimmed the light.

We dropped to bed when we stowed our gear,
Some were quiet, some showed fear.
We learned to shoot,
We shot on sight,
We learned to move in the middle of the night.

Our arms were muscled, our bellies tight.
Our eyes were steady, wide and bright.
Our bodies golden with a tan,
Our mission next, was Viet-Nam.

When I think back its plain to see,
Those DI's made a man out of me.

**DI-Drill Instructor