The German cadet: p3, in the barracks by thadeusz

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I loved music, I mean classical music and in this Military Academy, I only had military music (badly) played by "the band". This band consisted of a group of selected boys who wanted to make as much noise as possible to be accepted with "their specialty" in a musical band of the US Marines.
Moreover I had to learn notions I already knew : in Germany we are more advanced in Sciences, at least at the highschool level, than in the US.

Master Sergeant Jones took me separately to teach me how I had to behave as "a future US Marine, at least a possible one": he let me do more exercises to march in step, salute and especially to turn while marching by making only right angles. Moreover he forced me to salute him, and all my superiors, including cadet officers, in the proper Marine way. He had already briefly started to do all that as soon as I arrived for three weeks in this Military Academy, but now it was an intensive training everyday. The Master Sergeant had a major argument to compel me to do all that:
"If you fail this training, you will have to undergo Basic Training with the new cadets at the start of next school year."

I really started to hate this situation and to think about leaving this Academy with or without authorization.

Luckily, I had an excellent English teacher who realized rather rapidly how I felt and why I felt like that. Professor Kenwood started by asking many questions about my feelings about my stay as a cadet in this Academy, which was first of all a foreign school for me. I told him about my hatred of uniforms, and why this was associated with the past of my country. I also told him about my hate for military music and about my need for classical music. Finally I told him about my need to study something new, something which I had not already studied in my German school: my present courses led me to completely dislike studies although I liked them before I was locked (my words) in what I viewed as a "military prison", or worse as a borstal. Professor Kenwood told me that he understood my problems and that he would try to do something about them.

I had told him everything, except one thing: I was seriously thinking about fleeing away !

One week later, true to his word, Professor Kenwood was back and took me separately after classes. He first produced a little packet. When I opened it, I could see that it contained a CD reader, an earphone and several disks of classical music. Professor Kenwood told me then his conditions:
"Cadet Reubart, all this is yours provided you respect some conditions: you will only play music, with your earphone, when you are in your room studying. You promise not to distract your fellow cadet, the one who is sharing a room with you. You also promise to try to behave as a good Marine Cadet, respectful of the values of the Marine Corps. I don’t mean that you adhere to them, but that you behave according to these values and showing great respect to the uniform you have to wear. Do you agree to do all that ?"
What could I do ? I was only exchanging the promise to respect the clothes I was doomed to wear with evenings full of music. So I said:

"I will do all that, Professor."
"But there is more, Cadet Reubart," continued the Professor. "You will have opportunities to study advanced courses in mathematics, sciences, chemistry and physics. You will have to take advanced exams in these domains and that will replace some of your present courses. But you will have to learn more and better English. Agreed, Cadet ?"
"Yes Professor, I will do all that."
"Good, in this case we have a deal. Salute me now in the proper way to show that you really respect your uniform."
I stood up, took the position of attention and gave what I believe was a perfect salute to this great professor.
After this delicate moment, I started to study, with music in my room. Julian, who had frequent passes to his home, brought back modern Mexican music. We then spent our evenings, after official study time, studying each with his own music in our common room. We even succeeded, thanks to Julian’s mother, to have a second earphone which we used when we were ready to share our music. Otherwise we exchanged the unique earphones I had in a friendly way. We also learned English together: Julian simply needed to let me speak but he also taught me elements of Spanish.

Every week I went to the barber and got a renewed haircut: after a certain time the Sergeant Barber simply imposed a very short buzz cut but no longer a baldy. It was always the same procedure: I joined the queue of cadets waiting in front of his "shop" and when my turn came, I entered walking "on the square", saluted the Sergeant and told him: "At your command, Sergeant." He then pushed me in his chair, covered me as usual and let his own mood direct his clippers.

In April, Julian and I turned 15. Our birthdays fell nearly on the same day, in any case they were "celebrated" inside our military institution during the same month, beginning April. Other cadets had their birthday falling in this period and so I was not isolated.

At the end of the school year, in May, Julian could proudly announce to his parents that he was admitted in 11th grade. The situation was different for me. The Colonel announced to me that I had good school results in mathematics, natural sciences, chemistry and physics but that my English was still unsatisfactory. He had discussed the situation with my teachers and then with my father and their conclusion was that in order to let me become really a good American, I had to repeat my 10th grade. I was thus as of this moment a plain repeater. Me ! And I had been the best pupil in my class in Germany ! And I had studied advanced courses for nothing !

I felt betrayed but Professor Kenwood explained to me that my results in advanced courses had not been taken into consideration. The other professors had only looked at my results in the ordinary courses (which were also good) and in English (which was then despicable). Professor Kenwood made me accept my new situation of "repeater", completely new to me ! He also told me that my results in the advanced courses were not lost and that he had a scheme to use them later, provided my English got better.

I was then told that since my father was too busy to take care of me, he had asked the Academy to keep me during the summer recess. I would thus be in the same situation as other "cadets" coming from foreign countries and left there without the possibility to go home before they had obtained their diploma. I felt depressed. I went to my room where Julian was getting all his things ready to go to his parents home, in the same State as the Academy. Julian listened to me but could not do anything for me except promising that he would ask his parents to be sent with me in order to spend these lost holidays in the Academy. I thanked him, but I told him that I would call Linda, my father’s present wife, and ask her for help. Linda told me that she was busy and could not help me with what she called "my fantasy".

The next day all the "remainers" were told that they should consider this day as a normal day: the program would not be changed because they had to stay in the Academy, in uniform during the holidays. So I did as usual and just after the usual salute to the flag, I went to classes and started to study one of my advanced courses: the others had been passed without any problem !

That day was boring and I was pleased when, after lunch was over, I could go back to my lonely studies and later to a short session in military training. Even THAT was good to wait for bedtime on that day. I ended that sad day in my room, alone now but with Bach music in my ears.

The next day started exactly in the same way, but suddenly Master Sergeant Jones entered in the classroom and yelled:
"Cadet Reubart, go immediately to your room and put on your dress blue. Then report within five minutes to the Colonel."
I was happy, despite the very short time because I thought my father had come to fetch me. In fact it was not my father but Julian’s mother. This kind lady told me that Julian had told her about my situation, that she had immediately contacted my father and then the Colonel who finally allowed me to spend the first part of my holidays with the Lopez family, provided I would be back for the Summer Camp.

I spent excellent holidays with the Lopez family but after 4 weeks I had to go back to the Academy for the dreaded Summer Camp. Julian was lucky, he could stay home with his parents. I had only rare letters from my formerly beloved father !

When I reached the Academy, I was immediately sent to the CLOTHING department where I got a Summer Camp uniform: a yellow t-shirt, a red short and a red ball cap with the letters "Military Academy" on it. This cap did not have the same shape as my regular "marine uniform" cap. To that I could add knee-high white socks and white tennis shoes. I was then sent to the BARBER where my usual (and hated) Sergeant Barber gave an induction cut to each camper. This was not new for me, but some of the campers showed their dislike. They were told that they were now "campers in a military institution". They rapidly decided that it would be fun to "play soldier for four weeks".

I did not keep my usual room: I was sent to another building, sharing a room with a young guy who was not in the same situation as I was. He was not a repeater but he had asked his parents to go to this Military boarding school in order to get ready for a future enlistment. That means that he was going to be a 10th grade student in this Academy next year. We had been placed in the same room. His name was Robert Miller and he wanted to join the US Marines as soon as he got his diploma. He told me that he even wanted to join at the age of 17, but that his parents had decided to object to that choice. He thus had to wait until he was 18, preferably with a diploma. He added that for the Marines, any diploma would be good. I did not tell him that I hated the military.

The summer camp lasted for 4 weeks. At the end there was a parade: all participants had learned to march in step and to salute the officers properly. After all, this camp was not as bad as I had thought at first and I must even say that I enjoyed it.

As soon as the camp was over, the usual routine started again.

We had the arrival of new cadets. Since I was now a "full cadet", I was treated exactly like the real new cadets. Except of course that I already had my uniform and that I was used to the rather brutal treatments given by the Sergeant Barber to some cadets, and that included me: he did not like me and I did not like him.

That’s when Robert and I got our "Academy induction cut". This was copied from a real Marine Boot Camp induction cut. Before that, there was not a lot of hair left on my head. After this treatment, all our heads looked like billiard balls. Despite the fact that Robert dreamt of becoming a real US Marine, he had not expected that brutal treatment. I was luckier in a way: Julian had warned me and he had described what would happen to me. We also got a new set of uniforms, completely new for Robert but only a repeat of my first set of uniforms from my first year in the Academy.

During this second year in the Academy, I was no longer in the same room as Julian. The authorities had placed me in the same room as Cadet Robert Miller. The idea was that I might help him in class (which he disliked) and that he would help me becoming a future Marine: something he liked and I hated, but I never told him that. I knew now that it was prudent to be discreet. This situation simply made my situation slightly more difficult as far as listening to classical music was concerned. Luckily, Professor Kenwood interfered and made my situation bearable.

On some weekends, I got a pass and I could go with Julian to his home. His mother, who was a very kind person, decided to invite Robert since he was my roommate. She also invited Julian's new roommate. Nevertheless, Robert and Julian’s new roommate behaved in a brutal and rude way during lunch. Even my friend Julian disapproved of that conduct saying later and privately that this behavior was "unbecoming for future Marines", even more for candidate officers like himself.

Julian’s mother never again invited Robert and her son’s roommate ! Julian and I continued to spend all our "open week-ends" at his parent’s. Open week-ends in our Military Academy are week-ends when parents and associates are allowed to take their sons out of this boarding school for a Sunday noon meal.

All this made my forced stay in this military school bearable. I kept making good progress in school and especially in English and in the advanced courses.

One day I complained to Professor Kenwood, saying that I had good music but no German books. The next week he started to provide me with one German book every week. He was really a great teacher and educator.

During my first year in this military school, I started as a 10th grader. This year was incomplete but I survived. During my second year in this school, I was again a 10th grader and also I was a "plebe" with many restrictions associated with this status. All plebes had to go through an energetical military training. We had to wear clothes inspired from real uniforms worn by new Marines during their Basic training. Moreover, we had our heads shaved to the wood every Saturday and a cold shower followed that. Robert was again my roommate and he said that he liked it. I hated this period.

Nevertheless I survived, mostly thanks to Professor Kenwood, his music and the advanced courses he made me take, thanks also to Julian’s mother and her Sundays’ lunches. I will not forget to mention my friend Julian, even if we were no longer in the same room and if he was now in 11th grade.

I painfully survived the vulgarity of my new roommate Robert, nor did I like his stupid pseudo military like remarks !

After one month, there was a big pass in review and each new cadet entered officially the corps of cadets of this dreadful Military school. During this review each of us received the symbol of the US Marine corps to be pinned on our headgear.

The other cadets were present that day for the first time and courses started the next morning !

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