Veteran's Day is almost upon us and I find myself thinking about all the men and women who have served in the military. Not just the US military but, any military. Do you know how many American men and women served in a foreign military during World War II? A huge number. They wanted to be a part of the war in Europe and the Pacific. I knew one man who served for his country and the tales he would tell were fascinating. My stepfather was in the Czech army. This is just one of his stories, but it is a favorite of mine. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do and I hope I can give it the words to bring him and the other ones alive for you.
I was serving as a doctor at the hospital by the army airfield. Airplanes had just been used in World War I and the ones at this field, although newer were still a long way from the ones which would be built for World War II. One of the rules for the airmen was to never fly without a doctor being at the hospital. It was the rule and no one could break it. One doctor had to be available at all times and with that you can realize just how many doctors worked in this hospital with me.
Whenever a plane lifted off one of us was at the hospital. The ambulance was readied to take us to the field quickly if the need ever arose. Well, we seldom were needed. Once in a while a pilot would have a mishap: maybe needing oxygen for going to high or just not landing right if he was a rookie. For the most part, we would watch the planes leave and go about our duties, checking the sick, and waiting for the pilots to return.
I had watched the planes many times and had befriended the pilots. They would laugh when they saw me, wondering if I had a needle in my hand to give them more shots or if I was going to batter them with a thousand questions on what it was like to fly. I wanted to do that, but I was not allowed too. I was needed at the hospital and that was where I had to be.
One day, early in the morning, one of the pilots called me. "Doc, how would you like to fly in my plane?"
"Right now"? I asked.
"Yes, now. The general is not here and I can take you up! He won't be back until later"!
"What about the rule"? I countered.
"I'll have the doctor with me! What could be better?" he laughed.
I laughed and agreed to go. My dream would come true. I would fly and be free in the sky.
We met up at the airfield and my friend helped me into the gear and up I went into the plane. He readied the plane and we taxied to the strip of grass which was the runway. My friend radioed in to the tower and then with a roar the plane accelerated and I felt myself being forced backwards into my seat! The plane lifted and I found myself in awe as we climbed higher and higher. The field and ground around us fell away and I felt the pain in my ears as pressure was increased. I knew I had to swallow to ease the pressure. Now I understood what the pilots meant by air pressure and the pain they endured.
This was just a minor difficulty to adjust to, it was what I saw that stunned me to silence. The beauty of the land below and the majesty of the air around us. Clouds covered us with water droplets and the sun would dry them away. The fields, forests, and villages below became like toys from my past. Colours were vibrant and the air was filled with a mixture of grease, oil, and gas from the plane, but it was wondrous and I waas apart of it.
Soon, we banked and headed back to the airfield. We landed without incident and I was lost in musings about how amazing it had been. Suddenly, I looked up to find a car stopping beside the plane. My friend groaned: "Oh no!" Then I noticed who it was that stepped from the vehicle.
"What do you think you were doing, Captain?" growled a deep and angry voice.
"Just doing my usual flight pattern, Sir"! Answered my friend.
"You flew even though there was no doctor at the hospital?" questioned the very enraged personage in front of us".
I got out of the plane and joined my friend on the ground. "I wanted to go for a flight with him and he obliged me", I said trying to help my friend out of this predicament.
"But Sir!" My friend exclaimed. "I had the doctor with me! That was even better!"
The general glared at my friend. "You are suspended from flight for one week. You will clean latrines instead for your folly"! To me, the general said, "Now go, Doctor! You have had your fun and now you will spend a great deal of time at the hospital"!
The general spun around leaving us saluting behind him. He jumped into the vehicle and roared off. My friend and I still saluting as the dust swirled around us.
"Well", my friend said. "That went better than I thought it would. I wonder why the old goat was back so soon"?
I stared at him and tried to apologize for all the trouble I had gotten him into. He looked at me and laughed loudly! "I would do it all over again, my friend! Watching and listening to you as you saw the world as I do was well worth the little bit of anger I got from the old goat"! He laughed longer and finally I joined him as well. For it didn't matter that the doctor was in the plane with him, the doctor wasn't at the hospital! We roared with laughter over this and realized just how silly it all was. Then my friend drove me to the hospital and he began his discipline of cleaning the latrine. All because the doctor was with him and not at the hospital.
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