Jerry

Ski Bum, Yankee Cop, The Scotsman, Mingo and Actor sat together in chairs lined-up against a windowed room in the Yuma Sector headquarters of the Border Patrol.  They were pre-Academy trainees.  A P.I. who was a training officer had placed them there several hours previously.  When he did so, he forgot to mention that Trainees were lower than dirt; that no one of any account would even speak to them unless it was absolutely necessary.

Periodically, a grizzled officer with grey hair walked through the room not even appearing to glance at the Trainees.  He passed through several times and then only secretaries peeked around the corner at them.  No one asked them if they were thirsty  Time dragged on.

The Trainees began to talk among themselves about where they came from.  Yankee Cop had just come from a small police force in upstate New York.  the Scotsman had just gotten out of the Army, Mingo out of the Navy and Actor out of the Marine Corps.  Ski Bum was wearing Jesus sandals and shorts (it was August in Yuma); he had just come from the Ski Patrol in Squaw Valley.

Finally, the grizzled grey-headed officer returned.  His eyes had the set of a drill instructor and his facial skin had the color and texture of a fifty year-old saddle that had been used daily and had never seen a can of saddle soap.  He had round, circular pewter-colored eagles on his shoulders. Yankee Cop on the far end of the line was audibly hyper ventilating.  The veteran officer stopped in front of Ski Bum and stared at him with complete disdain.

"Boy", the old P.I. began, didn't your Mamma ever buy any long britches?  Where are you from?"  (None of them knew that he already knew everything about each one of them)

"California", Ski Bum met his stare.

"It figures ... damn Hippie!"  Then he sidestepped over to Actor.

"You must be Captain Actor.  How do you like it, now that you're actually going to have to work for a living? Do you think the fact that you were an officer in the Marine Corps means anything to me?"

Actor met his stare as had Ski Bum.  "That'd be a Mustang officer, Sir.  You see, I was enlisted before ....."

The old P.I. cut him off,  "I know what a Mustang is Captain Actor!  You and these other slobs can just stand by to stand by".  Then he left as unceremoniously as he had arrived.

Later that day, the Trainees discovered that the old P.I. was Jerry, the officer in charge of the Yuma Station.

Farther on  that afternoon, the Training Officer came to collect the Trainees for a manual labor detail of building drags.  He asked them if they had met Jerry.  Ski Bum and Actor explained their short conversations to him and he became positively slack-jawed.

"He talked to you?  He actually talked to you?  He never talks to Trainees.  He hardly even talks to me!  Jerry was a Sergeant in the 5th Marines at the Chosin Resevoir.  After Korea, he joined the Border Patrol and worked his way to to what he is now.  He's one tough S.O.B. - and he talked to you.  You are truly a lucky bunch of Trainees".

Later, much later, Jerry and Actor actually became friends.  He did the same with The Scotsman