The Army

Having reached a peak in friction ahead of the weekend, the pressure has disappeared and all has been fun and games since Friday. Almost… One of our trucks had an accident during a “turn and break” exercise on Sunday and turned completely sideways down a ditch.

I was asked to save my friends together with a wrecker truck. However, on its way to the rescue – the wrecker also went off the road! Military police was called out to block the road and I had to save the day by pulling up the wrecker truck using my winch for the first time and placing my truck in four different positions across the road. The wrecker was buried deep into the snow but after three hours of digging and winching, I got it up on the road again.

My poor friends had to wait outside for several hours before getting rescued, but thanks to making a fire and with plenty of food in their vehicle, they were OK.

After a weekend of working 24hours per day we finished Monday night at a spa in central Boden. The Psyops Unit had rented the entire Relax and massage floor and spent the evening indulging in steam rooms, Jacuzzis and slides. I was one of the brave who made it into the outdoor pool on the rooftop. The only challenge was getting into the 38-degree round pool, as the steps were covered in ice.

There was also a bar, where I managed to get a perfect Vanilla Sky...

We had a special herb sauna together at the end, which finished with smearing honey onto our bodies. It may sound like a strange thing to do with male colleagues but believe me – by now I’m completely comfortable with the guys and I’m happy to say we were all wearing swimsuits!

The exercise in Boden has been a true bonding experience and I am feeling very close and happy with the group at the moment. It’s a great bunch of personalities and I think it’s the first time in a very long time that I am experiencing the phenomena of belonging to a group. No matter what I get put through by the Army – I feel confident, calm and strong. I know I will handle whatever comes up especially as I have the trust and energy of the troop, as a part of me.

Despite being strong individuals, perhaps we’ve become an integrated Unit, at last.