1. Professor John Edwardes' Phone Rings. -
The Professor picks up: "Eddie!" ..... "What?" He listens, a minute. "At Camp Kilmer, New Jersey across the George Washington Bridge?" ..... "What do you need?" ....... "OK, I'll pick up the things and drive out. How do I find you?" ......... "The sergeant's desk? OK. See you." He hangs up and says to himself "Eddie's gone barmy! Joined the Army!" recalling the song lyric from The Three-Penny Opera:
Johnny joined up and Jimmy was there and George got a Sergeant’s rating
Don’t give your right name the Army don’t care
And the life is so fascinating
Let’s all go barmy, live off the Army
See the world we never saw.
..............
As he drives across the Bridge, Professor Edwardes is thinking: I'm surprised but not shocked. Eddie needs a break from college, needs real-world experience. His father was putting too much pressure to be pre-medical. A boy like Eddie should not be over directed. But it is good he thought it up on his own! Had I suggested it, not only would the parents blame me but Eddie might end up viewing me as his Svengali. This way he'll have no one to blame but himself if things go wrong.
Edwardes steps up to a desk and tells a tough-looking sergeant: "I came to bring some things to a new recruit, Edward Steinowitz." The Sergeant looks through a list, gives a brief nod and says, "Just go in that small room on your left, Mister. He'll be in there in a few minutes. And sign here."
Edwardes seats himself in the bare room with table and chairs. Eddie enters.
"So now you are a soldier," Edwardes quips, "Your mother could say "Just what I didn't raise my boy to be." He is thinking of the famous World War 1 lyric that the American songwriter Irving Berlin wrote and then retracted during World War 2. The professor stands and offers his right hand to Eddie who grabs it. Quite uncharacteristically, the professor throws his arms around Eddie and gives him a hug, saying, "You may rely on me, my boy. I'll go the limit for you." For a moment Eddie holds the hug as he fights back tears. Then, back in control, he sits opposite Edwardes. "Sir, thanks a million. I need to rely on someone and you are the guy I admire most. Thanks."
Edwardes coughs and takes out a handkerchief making to blow his nose but actually drying his eyes. "Do not explain. I understand. How long is your enlistment?"
"Three years, Sir. It gives me special education and more choices in my assignment. If I'd waited to get drafted, I'd be fighting in Korea in eight weeks."
"Smart boy; but still you are courageous volunteering at the height of a combat war. No matter what you say, if the Army wants to send you into it, you have to go. Well, enough of that. Here are the things you requested. Now, do you want me to contact your parents and explain?"
Eddie nods Yes. "Sir, I trust you to reassure them. This was a shock. I ran away. I didn't warn them at all."
"Oh, then I better call them as soon as I get back to the Bronx."
After giving Eddie the books and the other things and getting the information how to be in touch during basic training, the professor shakes hands with Eddie and goes back to the Bronx.
To continue Eddie's army experience now, click 14.2 The Effect & Affect of Army Life
Edwardes steps up to a desk and tells a tough-looking sergeant: "I came to bring some things to a new recruit, Edward Steinowitz." The Sergeant looks through a list, gives a brief nod and says, "Just go in that small room on your left, Mister. He'll be in there in a few minutes. And sign here."
Edwardes seats himself in the bare room with table and chairs. Eddie enters.
"So now you are a soldier," Edwardes quips, "Your mother could say "Just what I didn't raise my boy to be." He is thinking of the famous World War 1 lyric that the American songwriter Irving Berlin wrote and then retracted during World War 2. The professor stands and offers his right hand to Eddie who grabs it. Quite uncharacteristically, the professor throws his arms around Eddie and gives him a hug, saying, "You may rely on me, my boy. I'll go the limit for you." For a moment Eddie holds the hug as he fights back tears. Then, back in control, he sits opposite Edwardes. "Sir, thanks a million. I need to rely on someone and you are the guy I admire most. Thanks."
Edwardes coughs and takes out a handkerchief making to blow his nose but actually drying his eyes. "Do not explain. I understand. How long is your enlistment?"
"Three years, Sir. It gives me special education and more choices in my assignment. If I'd waited to get drafted, I'd be fighting in Korea in eight weeks."
"Smart boy; but still you are courageous volunteering at the height of a combat war. No matter what you say, if the Army wants to send you into it, you have to go. Well, enough of that. Here are the things you requested. Now, do you want me to contact your parents and explain?"
Eddie nods Yes. "Sir, I trust you to reassure them. This was a shock. I ran away. I didn't warn them at all."
"Oh, then I better call them as soon as I get back to the Bronx."
After giving Eddie the books and the other things and getting the information how to be in touch during basic training, the professor shakes hands with Eddie and goes back to the Bronx.
To continue Eddie's army experience now, click 14.2 The Effect & Affect of Army Life
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