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A soldier Q&A: Brothers in arms, part two

Contributed by: Steve Shultz, YourHub.com on 5/22/2006

YourHub.com community assistant Steve Shultz sent Ryan and Matt Mobley, identical twins from Highlands Ranch serving in the military, an e-mail Q&A on May 10, and here's what they had to say:

What kinds of activities are you doing right now?

Ryan: We just got finished with the Battalion Memorial Service in honor of the Marines who lost their lives with this battalion last deployment. I was one of seven Marines from the Battalion in the rifle detail conducting the 21-gun salute in honor of the fallen Marines.

Matt: My unit, 2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, just got back from a training event held at Fort Polk, La., which lasted around 24 days. It was a "mini Iraq," with a Forward Operating Base with conditions similar to that of what we will see in Iraq. Everything was made to simulate what we would be seeing in Iraq - many small villages with real Iraqi civilians who don't speak English, Iraqi Police, Iraqi National Guard, etc.

Now we are preparing for Iraq. We leave sometime this summer and will be gone for a total of 12 months. Packing bags, getting weapons and other items of equipment ready for our deployment, and getting ready to go on block leave.

What made you decide to serve?

Ryan: For a number of reasons. I watched the terrorist attacks happen on live TV the morning of September 11, 2001, and the only thing that stopped me from enlisting to fight right then and there was that I was entirely too young to enlist, even with parental consent.

As a kid I was always into the armed forces, but I had not yet decided on which one I wanted to join. After a little research, I concluded that the Marine Corps was right for me. I finally enlisted as early as I could, July of '04, after high school graduation, with parental consent (I was still only 17 at the time) and shipped off to boot camp in October of '04.

Matt: 9/11 was the driving force behind my enlistment, but there were many other factors as well - knowing someone else was doing something for me, fighting for me and dying for me while I went to college, advanced myself and started preparing for the future, and these are people I have never even met, so I decided to become one of those "Protectors." My brother's enlistment into the Marine Corps gave me the push to sign up. Three of my friends also joined at around the same time as myself. There will be a time and a place for advancing myself for my own future, but when the country needs me most is not that time.

What is a typical day like for you?

Ryan: A typical day back in garrison, which means not at war, would be reville at 0530 on a regular day, or earlier if we are going to the field. By 0730, the company is at formation; there we get our schedule for the day. Every morning right after formation we PT (physical training), which is usually a mild three-mile run with some calisthenics thrown in here and there. By 0930, we are changed over back into our uniform of the day and the actual work part starts. Typically we will go to classes, learn about weapons, tactics, everything that applies to our line of work we get classes on it. 1200 rolls around and its chow time, for anywhere between half an hour to an hour, depending on how busy our schedule is looking for the remainder of the day. After chow we usually go back to our barracks rooms and "standby" for something else to do. We end up getting off work at different times every day, but it usually falls around 4 p.m.

Matt: That's the thing about the Army; there is nothing typical about any day. Every day is different. The only thing that is constant is to wake up at 5:30 a.m., do physical training (PT) until 7:45 a.m., then I am on my own until 9 a.m. to get some food in me and shower up. The day starts at 9 a.m., depending on if we are going out to the field or not. In garrison, I am the Platoon's Armourer.

My job involves things like straightening up paperwork in the arms room, making sure weapon numbers, optics, night vision and infrared lasers all sync up with the master list (I know I'm speaking gibberish). When I have no arms room duties, I am generally a janitor. Such is the life of a private in the military! When nothing needs doing, then I will sit up in my room and watch TV, play computer games or whatever; pass the time, with all of my buddies in my squad.

When we are in the field, it is always different, be it at ranges zeroing weapons and qualifying, or doing an airborne operation at 1 a.m. with a follow on mission to seize an airfield.

How does corresponding with Highlands Ranch High School help you?

Ryan: Well, first and foremost, it is very motivating when you get letters from students you have never met thanking you for what your doing. Writing the students back took up a lot of my free time, which was great, and I regret not having enough time to write everyone back.

Matt: Any correspondence helps when you're in the infantry, because there are so many things you take for granted in life that you don't get in Iraq, such as Internet, e-mail, instant messenger, phones; whatever. I learned this lesson while in basic training. I think I wrote about three or four letters every day in basic. It makes your day that much better when you get a letter, because however much you're hating life and wishing you could be home, someone thinking about you and taking the time to write you makes you feel real good for the rest of the day, despite all the crappy things you may have to do.

The teachers and students, in particular, are nice to write with because it's interesting what the general civilian public thinks of the military or the Army. When I go home and tell people I'm a U.S. Army paratrooper, most people don't really understand what exactly it is that I do. The only information the public has about the military is what they saw on Black Hawk Down, the History Channel or computer games. Most of them are amazed at the realities of every-day life and how things work.

What do you miss most about Highlands Ranch?

Ryan: I miss high school, believe it or not. I miss all my friends, the occasional midnight Del Taco runs we used to pull on weekends and just generally hanging out with my friends every day, even if it were at school. But most of all I miss my family. I come back to Highlands Ranch every chance I get to visit my family.

Matt: Everything. Things are so much different on the East Coast than in Colorado. In Highlands Ranch, it's so laid back and easy going. Here, everything is moving in turbo mode; it's hard to adjust. My bed most importantly! My family, the weather (no humidity!), no bugs, good food chains, friends. The list goes on. Everything I took for granted before I left for the Army - the small things.

What messages do you have for people back home?

Ryan: Thank you so much for all of the support! It is very motivating, and keeps you driving on when the times are hard. It's an un-describable feeling, knowing that someone back home somewhere, whether they know you or not, cares about you and your well-being.

Matt: Enjoy it while it lasts! No matter how hard you think you might have it, you don't have it hard at all! Highlands Ranch is the best place to live in. School sucked when I was doing it, but, looking back, I had all my best memories and I would definitely choose four years of high school over four years in the infantry.

Just remember, when you think you are having a bad day, think about the families of those who have lost loved ones in Iraq or Afghanistan. Someone is always, always having a worse day than you.

Click here for the first part of this story.


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Showing 1 of 1 comments
Submitted By: Julie Gooden
posted on 5/25/2006 @ 10:54:44 AM
Rated Story
I am so proud of them! It's wonderful to have bragging rights on having two of the most courageous and loving brothers. Julie, Oldest sister of the Mobley twins
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