Disobedience, Poison, and Redemption: My Journey as a Marine Corps Vet.

After three tumultuous years, I got kicked out of the Marines. For most of my life I tried to forget my time in the service, but now I am learning to embrace it, even though it nearly cost me my life.

Most people remember their time in the service by the wars they fought. Vietnam. Iraq. Afghanistan. I joined in the mid-eighties, and there was no war. Sufficient time had passed since Vietnam that it seemed like the mistake of a different generation. The horrors of the desert wars were still ahead of us. I loved practicing martial arts and playing Ram…