In response to a meme that was posted on Facebook by an old service/war buddy of mine, I went looking for my old LBE (Load Bearing Equipment) with the intent of taking a picture of it and making my own meme, with the results being seen above. The picture and subsequent meme came out better than I planned, but what I didn't plan on was the unexpected trip down memory lane that took place as a result.
Personally, I always hated nylon combat gear - the early stuff, anyway. It was flimsy, prone to get torn, and wore out too soon. I especially hated the "Y" shaped harness because it put all of the weight on one spot on the back of your neck instead of distributing it evenly over your shoulders like the old canvas "H" harness (the one shown in the meme) did. So I always made sure I got my hands on an older canvas "H" harness, along with the older canvas butt pack. In the mid-70s when I enlisted this was no big deal as we were only a few years out from the Vietnam War and that gear was still plentiful, but by the early '90s finding canvas gear was a real challenge. But I managed to pull it off, as you can see.
If anyone has ever worn canvas combat gear when in the military, they know that canvas has its own unique smell, especially after its been used/worn/sweated in. My old LBE is no different, and the one shown in the picture is the one I used during the Gulf War and for the rest of my service after that. With the exception of the knife scabbard, it's still set up just as I wore it during the war, with the scabbard being added after the war. (During the war I wore my Ka-bar in its original leather sheath strapped to my right calf.) I keep it stored in the same "war bag" I used during the war, safely tucked away in a closet with the rest of my military gear. And yes, the "war bag" is also canvas.
When I went into the closet and pulled out the war bag, as soon as I opened it up that unique old canvas smell hit me like a ton of bricks. It instantly transported me back to the Gulf War and the years of service after that, and the more I smelled that old canvas the further back in time I went. I ended up all the way back to the Panama Canal Zone in 1977, the very first time I used a canvas LBE. That smell is still on my hands, and as I sit here typing this I can still smell it - and I like it. I like it very much.
It takes me back to a very special time in my life, a time when honor, dignity, loyalty, country, and comradeship meant something and were the main focus of my life. The military is a family, and that family is especially close when it goes through war together. I made some lifelong friends while I was in the military, and those closest to me are my wartime friends. We shared a bond that others can't, and even though we don't talk as much as we would like we know that bond will always be there. And if we meet again in person, we'll pick it up and talk just like we had seen each other the day before.
That's the way military people are. If you've been there then you know; if not, I can't explain it to you.
I miss my military family, I really do. I've been retired from the Air Force for 24 years, and at least once a month while I'm in the bathroom shaving, I'll look at my reflection in the mirror and say to myself, "What in the hell are you doing out here with all these goddam civilians?"
So I'm gonna sit here, finish my soft drink, and enjoy that old canvas smell and the memories that come with it for a little while longer. Then I'm gonna go shower and get dressed, the old canvas smell being washed away by the soap and water. After that I'm going to get dressed and get on with the rest of my day, putting the past back where it belongs - in the past.
Because life goes on.
IHC
