John R. McClarren - Writer/Military Consultant

Here is the introduction to my memoir: 

ZERO TO SIXTY-FIVE

CAUTION: HAIRPIN CURVES AHEAD

INTRODUCTION

As I sit here on this sunny, southern California beach, absorbing all of those warm rays from directly over head and the cool breeze off the Pacific, watching the surfers cut the curls of those beautiful off-shore breakers, an occasional dolphin or sea lion skimming the surface of the water… All right, all right, I’m lying. Actually I am here in northern Michigan in early December, looking across my back yard, covered in a nice, thick blanket of brilliant white snow, and the temperature at a nice brisk twenty degrees without the wind chill factor. That may well create a beautiful picture in some of your minds or even in a photograph, but it is not a very pretty picture to me right now. It’s cold, man! It would not be so bad if I were out down-hill or cross-country skiing, but I was just out in that nasty weather, going to the grocery store, and  not having all that much fun. However, looking across the snow, I can still reflect back on those days on the Pacific coast beaches.

I was born and raised in San Diego, California, home to a very large contingency of the US Navy and US Marine Corps. Although I had few vivid memories of family military ties, I could not help but be influenced to some degree by my surroundings. I had one uncle who had been a sailor in World War II, and I had seen pictures of him in uniform. I had a second uncle by marriage, who was a career naval photographer, and I saw him frequently in uniform. That was the extent of military influence in my younger life. So, what was it that might have been responsible for my having spent over thirty years in the active and reserve components of the US Army? It had to have been much more than just one or two individuals or a single incident that influenced me to such a degree.

If I were to classify my life with a single, brief idea, it would have to be a continuing challenge to reach fulfillment, which would also be my own self-satisfaction. That pattern seems to have remained reasonably consistent from birth to the present.

Concerning the  comment about a continuing challenge, my readers should not interpret that as a negative attitude leading to a big pity party over my life. I am more than just a little pleased about the outcome of my life so far. I would also not want to imply that all the dreams I have ever had have all been fulfilled at this point, but everything that has transpired thus far has given me a complete life of satisfaction. Then again, I am not even close to being finished. I have reestablished a whole new set of goals for life, as I still have over forty years left before I am through with it. I do plan to live to106 years old.  I’m sure it will be a whole new world by then, right?