History of Mind fate

 I started work on Of Mind and Fate and completed the first draft as a young 1st Lt. The Assistant Plans and Operations officer, for the 3rd Battalion, 141st Mechanized Infantry Regiment TXANG, out of McAllen Texas,  It was late one night while I was battle captain duty, on grave yard shift, from inside our 577 Command track, on Christmas Eve in 1990, at Fort Hood Texas, as our unit, readied for deployment to Iraq in support of Operation Desert Storm. The 3-141 Infantry Bn. all proudly wore to the oldest regimental crest in Texas with the Motto "Remember The Alamo" . On Christmas day as preparations for load-up and move out ramped up, I filed the first draft "Of Mind and Fate" in a rush and lost it.  

I found the unfinished piece in my personal military files as a Captain during my next deployment to Taszar Hungary with the 111th Area Support Group out Austin Texas. Of all days, I found time to work on the body of the first draft, on Charismas Eve of 1997 and completed a good final draft just before midnight of that Eve. Once again not having any more time to work on it, I filed "OF Mind and Fate" on that Christmas day, once again, forgot about it.  

While on my third deployment now a  Major, out the G4 US ARMY SOUTH Fort Sam Houston Tx. and serving as the US Operating Site Commander, (a Counter Drug Mission) in Apyay, Colombia, I  found it once again as I was going thru files in my brief case in late December 2005.  I decided I would tweak it, on Christmas Eve ( why break tradition right?) of that year. I shoved "Of Mind and Fate back into my brief case on Christmas day once again as there was work to be done. I flew out of the jungles of Colombia 6 months later. I returned to base at Ft Sam Houston Texas and retired a few months later. 

I stumbled across "Of Mind and Fate"  once again just before the COVID epidemic. as I was cleaning out old Army file records after my retirement, After reading it, I could see that it was very close, but something was not quite there just yet. so I decided to work on it on,...You got it! on Christmas eve of 2o19. And put it  on a site but removed it because it still was not quite ready. But  I am happy to report that after a few very minor tweaks, On September 11, 2024, Of Mind and Fate will publish here. on this site.  Enjoy.