The Birthday Ball 2008

Sometimes my day job is stressful. I'm a clinical psychologist and I work in a veteran's hospital. The major way that I cope with my stress is to write essays. Sometimes I send these essays to people - especially people who understand military life. Never have I posted one online. However, I am posting part of one here...because it is part of my story today. The original story was sent to a friend of mine who is a Marine, after all it was partly about him (he is the "you" I refer to in the story) and it was also about Marines in general. I have edited the post to delete all personal information about the individual patient so that confidentiality can be protected.

The Birthday Ball

Every year at this time the USMC gives itself a formal birthday party. Typically this party is a grand ball replete with military elite in dress uniforms and women in spectacular ball gowns. This tradition has been in place for two-hundred and thirty-something years. Birthday Balls happen all over the world wherever Marines congregate. Princes and princesses they are in an annual fairytale that includes reading of a proclamation from the Commandant, service of the first piece of cake to the oldest Marine who symbolically hands it off to the youngest Marine, band music, dancing, laughing, drinking, enthusiastic "hoorahs," and all the merriment that has been saved up since last year's party. Young and old. Black and white. Enlisted and Officer. And don't forget the pretty girls.

What could be better? "Nothing" you say with the confidence and the wisdom that comes from spending one's life as a member of the Corps. But you would be wrong, as you will come to see in the story below. I know that I reminded you the other day that you did owe me a Birthday Ball. You don't anymore. Yesterday I attended a Marine Birthday Ball that surpasses any other party I have ever attended.

You see, yesterday we had a Birthday Ball at the hospital About 2pm, several young, strong, good-looking Marines wearing Dress Blues arrived on the unit. Along with them came men from several generations wearing Marine hats and pins who were dressed in street clothes. They brought with them an entire party. Staff and Marine alike enjoyed a decorated sheet cake, balloons, a bouquet of flowers, USMC napkins and placemats, music, speeches, and traditions. No other military service does this for their sick and injured.

Each in his turn, to a man, every single Marine shook hands with patients, they looked each other in the eye, they complimented their medal-covered chests whispering "wow, completed combat tours", they identified as brothers for life. Our Marines didn't dance on their feet, but they did dance with pride and become whole in mind and body, heart and spirit, always wearing smiles from ear to ear. When asked the Marines in the hospital said "This Ball's for Me." And so it was.

However, I was there.
I danced, too.

The essay was written on Thursday. On Friday night about 7:30 I got a phone call from my friend Lee who is a Colonel in the USMC. Anyway, he asked me to attend the real Marine Birthday Ball that would be held in Birmingham on Saturday night at 7p. He said the story moved him so much that he wanted to make sure that I got to attend a real ball. Of course, I said "Yes!" and began to wonder how was I going to get a formal ball gown the next day AND have it altered, and get both a manicure and a pedicure, AND, oh no! He called at 10am to say that I needed to be ready at 5pm rather than 7pm! No ball gown was obtained but a pretty party dress was and off we went to the Ball. And here's another of the pics my daughter took of us on our way into the chariot, his Jaguar. My very own fairytale came true for me last night when I finally got to be a princess dancing with a prince at this 2008 Birthday Ball.