Sterling Cub Reporter: November 2014 by Sterling Cub

NOVEMBER 2014

Traditions lead to distractions Pg. 2

Volume 1 • Issue 2

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Handling the pressure Pg. 6

Homecoming deemed best Pg. 12

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November 2014 • Sterling Cub Reporter • 1

OPINIONS

Traditions lead to distraction Aside from wearing your loose clothing are encouraged to go out and satisfy our to eat food, football and the Macy’s day selfish desires? Just like football, Black parade are the biggest Thanksgiving Day Friday can be turned into something that traditions. I guess you could classify those involves your family, but there really is no as good traditions. Now, eating a family way to deny that this day is based on buymeal together then going your separate ing material things to be thankful for the ways could be considered a bad family next year. This, to me, is by far the worst tradition. An ugly tradition would be conThanksgiving tradition. I have been Black sidered as camping out at 1 o’clock in the Friday shopping once, just to see what afternoon, at a store, to grapple for items it was like. From what I’ve seen, it’s not instead of being thankful for what we much different from any other day at the already have. Instead of celebrating things mall. It’s just a little more crowded. Black we are thankful for, we find ourselves doFriday is just an excuse for people to go ing other things. out and spend all their money to satisfy So, what is Thanksgiving all about? I’ve their greediness. Now, I’m not saying Black KASADY SMITH always seen it as a day to be thankful for Friday shopping is a sin by any means. I’m all of the things that you have and to take just saying that Black Friday is the coma day to enjoy those things. Things such plete opposite of Thanksgiving. as family and health, as well as material things like clothes Why don’t we skip to focusing on what’s really important and a home. Though Thanksgiving is meant to be spent that to everyone: food. In my opinion, food brings everyone way, Thanksgiving day offers many distractions. together. Aside from the moral obligation, people show Shall we start with everyone’s favorite? Football. This up to Thanksgiving parties for the food. But here’s another great tradition has turned into something that everyone thing. Why should there be any feelings of obligation to focuses on instead of giving thanks. Securing tickets to celebrate something you’re thankful for? Does anyone show the game or spending the afternoon in an easy chair is the up to Christmas parties because of moral obligation? No, definition of being thankful, right? Wrong. I mean, there are because they expect to get presents. So don’t show up to a ways that you can turn your favorite sport into a family tra- Thanksgiving party just to receive things. Yes, Thanksgiving dition, but spending this day of thanks like it’s any random is about giving, but don’t be someone who only receives. Sunday watching football is completely missing the point. This is the whole point of Thanksgiving! Celebration for Black Friday is easily the biggest shopping day of the the things that you have. Things that you love. You have year. A day where grabbing for items and spending obscene family, a home, food to eat, and clothes to wear. Those are amounts of money isn’t frowned upon. Isn’t it ironic how the things that matter. The football game, shopping, and the merely a few hours after spending a day being thankful we amazing food just come as a side dish.

About the Cover Photo: During the homecoming pep rally on Oct. 3, students yell as the cheerleaders lead a chant. The pep rally included candidate games, songs played by the band, and pep talks by Football Head Coach Matt Hendricks. (Photo by Taryn Gillespie)

The Sterling High School Cub Reporter and all subsidiary publications are designated forums of free speech. The print edition is published October through May of each school year by the journalism class at Sterling High School. It is distributed for no charge throughout Unified School District 376 buildings and the Sterling community. The first copy is free. Subsequent copies will cost $1 per copy. For information about being added to the subscription list, contact Todd Vogts at 620-278-2171. Letters to the editor are welcome. Email them to editor@sterlingstudentpublications. com. All letters must be signed. Anonymous letters will not be printed. All letters subject to editing for legal, grammatical and factual reasons.

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NEWS

Most like switch to 3A DALLAS LACKEY Cub Reporter

This year, Sterling High School jumped up from a 2A Classification to a 3A Classification, with a freshmen class of 46, replacing a small senior class last year, the Black Bears seem to have prepared for the change. “We knew we were going to be 3A based on the enrollment numbers. The fact that we were 2A the last two years was due to the small senior class last year,” Athletic Director Monte Ball said. Being one of the smaller schools in 3A seems to be a possible issue. “Obviously you’d rather be one of the biggest schools in your classification, just having numbers gives you an advantage,” Ball said. “So Sterling being one of the smaller schools, I would say it’s a disadvantage for us to be 3A.” With the new classification comes new opportunity for the athletes, such as sophomore cross country runner Will Dutton, “I think it will make me be more competitive. It’ll make me a better athlete,” Dutton said. State and Regional Cross Country competes within the schools’ classifications, so Dutton seems to see an opportunity. “It’s almost easier. Last year our regional had the top three teams in 2A, so our regional was like a miniature

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state, but this year I think it’ll be easier at regionals,” Dutton said Head Coach Dan Whisler still seems to think that the Cross country team will still compete being 3A. “From a competition standpoint, 2A and 3A are both competitive. A few years ago 2A was maybe even more competitive than 3A,” Whisler said. “In our league, we’re competing against 4A schools, so we can compete whether we are 2A or 3A.” With the cross country team’s league being 3A and 4A, Whisler seems to see a chance for his runners to improve “If you have to raise the bar to compete, it definitely helps the runners,” Whisler said. With fall sports almost over and winter sports around the corner, Girls Basketball Head Coach Jill Rowland stills seems happy about her teams chances in 3A “I don’t really think it will matter,” Rowland said. “It will all just depend on our sub-state drawings, which obviously we don’t know.” Falling to Hillsboro in the second round of sub-state last year, senior Chelsey Riffel sees an opportunity. “At first I thought it was going to be harder for sports teams to get anywhere,” Riffel said. “But now I am just determined to beat bigger schools and really focus on the sport I am playing.” The Boys Basketball Coach Derek Schneider seems to like the competi-

tion the team will have this year. “I’m happy about it,” Schneider said. “It’ll be tougher competition, but 2A is a very tough division too.” For the golf team, however, moving up to 3A will present many new challenges for the young team. “Going up to 3A is going to make it really difficult for us to get where we want to be,” senior Caleb Hendricks said. “Now we are going to be competing with schools like Hesston and Collegiate where we are simply outgunned.” Despite coming in as underdogs this year, after finishing second place at State last season, Hendricks and the rest of the team still have high expectations for the upcoming season. “Even though the odds are against us, I still expect us to come out and compete our very best and always be a threat to win each tournament we are at,” Hendricks said. “Not to say that winning at this level is impossible, but we will have to compete at a level that this school has never seen before.” This first year of 3A will bring many challenges and new experiences for the athletes, but most seem excited and ready. “It will be very interesting to see how each season plays out,” Dutton said. “I am ready to see how I do and how the teams do.”

November 2014 • Sterling Cub Reporter • 3

NEWS

Life in the lunch room Behind the scenes of the school cafeteria JANYSSA PHILLIPS Cub Reporter At the beginning of the day the Sterling High School cooks — Susan Durham, Sherri Ewertt, and Bonnie Cain — come to school and start to prepare for breakfast. They also make the tea and coffee for the teachers. Each of the ladies have a certain job they do: Durham bakes everything, Ewertt makes the main dish, and Cain prepares the salad bar. Once lunch starts, while the kids are eating, the ladies start the clean up process. The ladies start cleaning up so early because of the amount of silverware the school has is not enough to meet the needs of all the school lunches. “It’s a continuous process that begins right after the first serve,” Ewertt said. The ladies in the lunch room have to be very organized, so they know when to thaw things out. For instance, ground beef needs two days to thaw, so the ladies have to make sure it is in the refrigerator before hand so, when they need it, the meat is completely thawed.

“It’s quite a process. You have to be able to plan ahead.” — Susan Durham “It’s quite a process. You have to be able to plan ahead,” Durham said. Most everything in the cafeteria is homemade, even the cookies that

Senior Jacob Hayden gets his lunch from the school cafeteria. The lunch was a chili dog and french fries. (Photo by: Janyssa Phillips)

people buy from the ala cart are made by Durham. The ladies in the cafeteria are always trying to incorporate new items into the menu. For example, this year they are going to be trying new stir fry vegetables. “Sometimes the food has no flavor, but other times it tastes great and is enough to fill me up and get me to dinner,” senior Destiny Nickerson said. The cooks are always trying to make the food enjoyable for the student

4 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

body. The Superintendent Fred Dierksen has nothing but positive things to say about the lunch room staff. “I always notice the ladies having fun together and they seem to enjoy their day,” he said. “They care very much about what they provide for the kids. They try hard to do their best. They are very dependable, and I think that they are professional in the field that they are in. I think we are very fortunate to have the people that we have in our school lunch program.” www.sterlingcubreporter.com

Hickman named Teacher of the Month ALEX VELIZ Cub Reporter Teacher of the Month is a celebration to reward a selected Sterling Junior-Senior High School teacher for exemplifying certain traits other staff members vote on. “Things they may be doing in the classroom or just things that they have done to help other teachers,” Principal Bill Anderson said.“The criteria or the characteristics could be all over the board as to why they are being recognized.” Anderson also believes Teacher of the Month is an important way for a teacher to be recognized by the staff of Sterling Junior-Senior High School. Anderson also wants to try to change the mind-set of teachers from work to appreciation with this program. “Everybody goes to work to earn money, but it is nice when you are at work and your being commended for the things you do well,” Anderson said. “It’s good for our faculty in that it gives them an opportunity to recognize each other and what they see in each other’s classes.” This month the teacher was chosen by last month’s Teacher of the Month, Kim Richter. “I chose Ms. Hickman because of some help and support she gave when I was working with a student,” Richter said. Hickman, a first-time receiver of teacher of the month feels that regardless of the award a teacher should still continue teaching as usual. “I still do a lot of hands on activities in my class and things like taking notes periodically,” Hickman said. “I have just added some classes to certain periods like comparative anatomy and agricultural science.” Hickman tries to focus more on the students and making it more enjoyable for them. “I do think that some students enjoy my class. I mean, you can’t get everyone to enjoy your class, and what matters is to be able to reach someone,” she said. Making connections is what Hickman will vote on when

Emily Hickman, junior high science teacher, grades student presentations. (Photo by Alex Veliz)

choosing Teacher of the Month at the faculty meeting toward the end of November. “Probably someone who works well with students and wants them to succeed,” she said. “There really isn’t any other trait I would look for. Any teacher who goes out of his or her way to help the students.”

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November 2014 • Sterling Cub Reporter • 5

FEATURE

Ha n d lin g T h e Pr e s s u r e

SHS athletes, coaches deal with the difficulties that come with expectations LINDSAY GILMORE Cub Reporter

he score is 23-24 in the third set. It’s the state championship volleyball game. You step up to service line, knowing that this serve can either extend the game or cost your team everything. All the pressure in the gym is on your shoulders. You look to your coach, and they give you the reassuring nod you were hoping for. After a deep breath, the ball flies over the net, and all of the pressure that was on your shoulders is now on your entire team. Players aren’t the only ones who feel the weight of competition bearing down on them. Coaches feel it too, and regardless of the sport or season, the pressure is always there. “At the high school level, I feel the pressure comes from getting my players to play at their best abilities,” volleyball coach Sheri Bennett said. “Some years there just aren’t the athletes with the skills to win, but I want them to be the best that they can be with what God has given them.” While both coaches and athletes feel the pressure, it isn’t often the weight is the same on each of them. “I feel pressure to make every single one of my serves,” junior Holly Davis said. “If multiple people have missed their serve before me, I feel obligated to go into the game and serve one hundred percent.” Feeling the pressure isn’t the only thing that can affect a game. It’s also how the pressure is handled. “Preparation is big in handling the pressure,” Head Football Coach Matt Hendricks said. “I also like to get away by myself and listen to music and pray. Both of those things are very calming for me and help me relax more.” Dealing with that weight on your shoulders is hard, but it can be even harder when you strive to help others deal with the weight that is put on them. “For the first time since I’ve been a head coach, I started out the season telling my varsity I would put pressure on them,” Bennett said. “We didn’t finish last year like we should have. We were at 24 in the final game for a long time and couldn’t finish. I told them we weren’t going to let that happen again. Many times throughout the season I’ve said, 6 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

‘One point. It’s one point.’ We have dug ourselves in a hole many times this season and fought our way back to win. That’s the pressure they need to learn to work through. It’s not something you can practice. I can say the score is 21-24 and you need to win, but it’s not the same unless it’s live and you are facing a team like Hillsboro.” While some coaches attempt to help with the pressure, others try to take it away. “I try to remove pressure from my assistant coaches and players as much as I can. Even if that means putting more on myself,” Hendricks said. “I have very high expectations for both, but I believe expectations and pressure are two different things.” Although coaches attempt to relieve the pressure put on their team, the weight can be too much to bear at some point. “Last year at sub-state volleyball, I messed up under pressure,” junior Sarah Stallings said. “We needed one point, and I was playing front row. We needed to get a block. The girl hit it, and I tipped it. But the ball went out of bounds. Game over. Season over.” That breaking point is always changing, from preseason to post-season. “During season, the expectation to win is greater,” Bennett said. “People ask what your record is and seedings are based on records.” The in-season work is different from the off-season work, but there is always work involved in coaching. “Before the season, there is a lot of prep work that goes into making sure our schemes are where they need to be,” Hendricks said. “During the season the pressure is to prepare for each opponent and put players in the best situations to make plays.” The coaches have different pressures than the athletes when it comes to the off-season. “I feel some pressure to push myself farther to get better,” junior Zane Nichols said. “The other pressure is the coaches. They want you at workouts, so if you don’t go, you are letting more people down that just yourself. And the ‘not mandatory’ practices. The ones that coaches suggest but you don’t have to go to.” There are few lucky souls that don’t feel pressure on them, but there is still something there. “A lot of times I don’t even feel pressure. I get more excited or anxious before or towards the beginning of a game,” sophomore Kyler Comley said. “I feel a little bit of pressure www.sterlingcubreporter.com

Sophomores Kyler Comley and Brandon Frederick walk with Head Coach Matt Hendricks before the football game in Haven. (Photo by Taryn Gillespie)

Senior Kasady Smith sets the ball as juniors Sydney Wilson, Holly Davis, and coach Sheri Bennett looks on. (Photo by Alex Veliz) www.sterlingcubreporter.com

Coach Matt Hendricks tells senior Jordan Proffitt what to change after a play in the Haven football game. (Photo by Taryn Gillespie)

Sophomore Niki Dowell serves at the Lyons junior varsity tournament. (Photo by Aniston Ramsey)

November 2014 â&#x20AC;˘ Sterling Cub Reporter â&#x20AC;˘ 7

Sophomore quarterback Kyler Comley warms up before the Homecoming game against Halstead. (Photo by Taryn Gillespie) 8 â&#x20AC;˘ Sterling Cub Reporter â&#x20AC;˘ November 2014

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toward the end of the season because this is where our season really starts. In these coming weeks.” All of the pressure that is involved in the daily athletic lives is not something to be taken lightly. “Over the many years I’ve coached, the pressure doesn’t get to me like it used to. I try to do the best that I can do and hope that my team is doing the same,” Bennett said. “I lay awake at nights trying to figure out what we need to work on, or what drill I could come up with to make us better at a certain skill. So when I lose some sleep, I just tell myself I’m doing the best that I can. If I feel like I’ve failed somewhere, then I try to find a way to get better.”

The varsity volleyball team celebrates after scoring against Lyons at home. (Photo by Alex Veliz)

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SPORTS

Thrasher places 5th at State CALEB HENDRICKS Cub Reporter

For the second year in a row, sophomore Maddie Thrasher went into postseason play with the expectation of making it to the State Tennis Tournament, and for the second year in a row, she met those expectations. “My goal was to improve this year by getting better in my weaknesses,” Thrasher said. “I also wanted to make it to State again and beat 8th place since that’s what I got last year.” Thrasher qualified for State once again after making her way through the top regional, consisting of teams such as Hesston, Hillsboro, Wichita Collegiate and Wichita Independent. “I think if we would’ve been at any other regional, our whole team would have had a chance to make it too.” At State, held in Dodge City, Thrasher breezed through her first two matches, defeating Meaghan Matson from Ashland in the first round, and Anna Vialle from Kansas City Christian in the second, both by scores of 6-1, 6-1. “In the first two matches, I was just in a groove. I played

Maddie Thrasher reaches out for a back hand during her first match at State. Thrasher won her first and second match by a score of 6-1, 6-1. (Courtesy Photo)

244 South Broadway Sterling, KS 67579 Ph: 620-278-2102 10 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

Sophomore Maddie Thrasher competed at the 3-2-1A State Tournament in Dodge City. This was Thrasher’s second appearance at the State Tournament. (Courtesy Photo)

well in both, and I felt like I had momentum moving forward,” she said. In the third round, she faced off against Allison Weber from Hillsboro, who she had played and defeated at the beginning of the season, but she came up short this time, losing 6-4, 6-4. “I was able to stay positive after my lose to Weber because I knew I still had a shot at 5th place,” she said. After losing to Weber, Thrasher moved to the consolation round of the bracket and knocked off her first two opponents, which put her in the 5th place match against Besa Bwayla of Hoisington. Bwayla had bested her twice in the regular season. This time, however, she came out on top and with a 5th place state medal. “I was able to bounce back from my previous losses to Besa because I told myself that I would face her again, and that when I did, I would beat her,” she said. As Thrasher moves forward in her tennis career, she still has things to work on to take the next step. “Next year I want to make it in the top 4,” she said. “I think I could’ve this year, but now I just have something to work for next year.”

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November 2014 • Sterling Cub Reporter • 11

FEATURE

Seniors Chelsey Riffel and Jordan Proffitt play the newlywed game. (photo by Taryn Gillespie)

From left, Kasady Smith, Cody Salazar, Maya Bauerle, Andi Dowell, Meyer Anderson, Caleb Hendricks, Chelsey Riffel, and Jordan Proffitt. (photo by Taryn Gillespie)

2014 homecoming deemed best of recent years KYLAH COMLEY Cub Reporter

hen the bell rang at 8 a.m on Monday, students at Sterling High School still looked as if they had just crawled out of bed. The Homecoming festivities began with spirit week, which started off with pajama day and held themes such as Rachet Wednesday and Twin Tuesday, to name a few. SHS cheerleaders, student council members and secretary Pam Smith selected winners for the best dressed each day. “I liked the white out day the best,” senior Andrew McPherson said. “Everyone was able to wear the football boys’ jerseys, and I was able to paint my entire face white.” Students said they felt this year’s spirit week was more enjoyable than

DANCE By the Numbers 148 students surveyed

the previous years. Friday afternoon, students could hear the sound of the band playing from down the hall as the grade school and high school students gathered in Ora Shields for the pep rally. “It’s so cool seeing all of the Sterling schools together and having everyone be happy and supportive,” senior Chelsey Riffel said. “It’s just really awesome to see all of us come together as a whole.” Sterling hosted the Halstead Dragons for this year’s homecoming football game. The Bears fell short, losing 63-12. Senior Cody Salazar suffered a fracture to the lower portion of his hand. “I thought they played really hard, Coach Wes Laudermilk said. “It was disappointing that Cody couldn’t finish because of his injury.”

Before the opening kickoff, the crowd waited anxiously for the homecoming king and queen to be announced. When Caleb Hendricks’ and Andi Dowell’s names were called, applause erupted from the stadium. “It was an honor to win homecoming queen. I was really excited when I first heard my name. I wasn’t expecting to win because I thought it was going to be really close, ” Dowell said. “I was really glad that Caleb won too because we are really good friends.” “Blame” by Calvin Harris kicked the dance off Saturday night. “Looking back at the homecoming dance, I feel like everyone was dancing and no one was uncomfortable,” junior Hannah Hendricks said. “The music was fun, and there was a really good variety.”

84% 37% 29% 7% 67% attended the dance

12 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

went single/ with friends

asked their date in a cute way

of girls asked their dates

spent $0-$50 on getting ready

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HO W DI D YO U G ET AS KED?

Caption goes here.

2. 5.

1. Freshman Kenan Comley asks freshman Raegan Mantz to homecoming with a message on a volleyball.

(photo by Kylah Comley)

2. Sophomore Dallas Lackey asks sophomore Sierra Emery with a pepperoni pizza that spelled out, “Homecoming?” (photo courtesy of Dallas Lackey) 3. Freshman Brady Ravenstein asked junior Holly Davis with a sign during her volleyball game. (photo courtesy of Holly Davis)

4. Homecoming King Caleb Hendricks dances with Homecoming Queen Andi Dowell. (photo by Taryn Gillespie) 5. Sophomore Kyler Comley receives a snap while junior Shane Winters runs behind him. (photo by Taryn Gillespie) www.sterlingcubreporter.com

November 2014 • Sterling Cub Reporter • 13

INFOGRAPHIC

Not Know

About

You

The average American gains 1 to 2 pounds during the holiday season.

Thanksgiving Photos and Infographic By Taryn Gillespie

The number of turkey sold for Thanksgiving is more than Christmas and Easter combined.

Thanksgiving:

Christmas:

Easter:

Lucky for many sweet potato lovers, this spud has a reasonable number of calories while delivering a ton of nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C and iron. Eating sweet potatoes regularly can also help reduce the risk of breast cancer in women by 25 percent. It’s hard to imagine the turkey as the official bird of the United States, but if Ben could have been. In a letter to his daughter, Franklin referred to the turkey saying, “I wish the bald eagle had not been chosen as the representative of our country! The turkey is a much more respectable bird, and Turkey Pictures from: withal a true original http://www.nps.gov native of America.”

14 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

Do you know what goes into stuffing? We can tell you — loads of butter and plenty of assorted high-fat meats. One scoop can have up to 550 calories. Instead, replace the butter with low-sodium chicken broth. Then your stuffing won’t leave you feeling as, well... stuffed.

A lot of cranberries are needed to accompany all that turkey on Thanksgiving. In all, 768 million lbs per year.

Turkey Pictures from: http://www.butterball.com

Might 1 2

Facts

It was not until 1941,that congress declared Thanksgiving to be a national holiday. It was declared to be the fourth Thursday in November.

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ENTERTAINMENT NOTE: Killer Serial Fiction is a part of Sterling Student Publications. It is the home of creative writing by Sterling High School creative writing students. Stories appearing here are works of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. These stories are presented for entertainment purposes only and are not intended to be read as being part of Sterling Student Publications news coverage. For more stories, visit www.sterlingstudentpublications.com/fiction.

Viet-“Nom” nom nom part 2

BY JESSY MARCELINE

As we crossed into the enemy territory, we had settled down. Our minds on the runway and surrounding environment, I had seen the pictures before of the jungles, but I never would have imagined it to be this bad. The runway was small and almost overrun by the thick branches of the twizzler trees; their bright red stalks covered in dark, almost royal blue leaves the size of a man’s torso. The pilot looked back slightly, his eyes obscured by the visor of his helmet. “We’re coming in for landing. Most of the marines on the floor are out on repairs from last night’s attacks. You’re to rendezvous with Fort Berring as soon as your boots hit the ground.” I can’t deny the fact that I was nervous. To say otherwise would have been a lie. We all stepped out onto the tarmac and looked about. Nothing awaited us but a single other gingerbread man in a sergeant’s uniform. “Who is the platoon leader?” he stated softly as if he half expected to be shot for making too much noise. I stepped forward. “I would be him Sir.” The man nodded and stepped towards me, his hand reaching towards his head in an open salute. I interrupted him mid motion “Don’t salute me! If snipers were watching they’d turn my head to crumbs.” I visibly see him stutter slightly and nod. “Y-yes sir, I’m Sgt. Cakes. I’ve been assigned to accompany you as your radio operator.” I nodded as we continued down the path. As we arrived we could smell the smoke from the previous night and bodies of fallen soldiers lay crumbled and sticky. It was a demoralizing sight, but we moved into the head barracks as the battalion commander began his briefing on the supposed attack on the Fortune Cookie strongholds, just to the east in the Gumdrop Mountains. He didn’t acknowledge our entrance, but he gave us our orders. We left immediately, heading into the jungle. Our objective? To scout out and drive out any Fortune Cookie resistance by any means necessary. Our regiment was five hundred strong and we moved quickly, but were taken off guard. From the jungle brush

shots thundered out like hammers on hot iron. I felt panicked. As we hit the soggy ground below, I saw Teddy curled behind a tree stump and I moved quickly, rolling and clawing to get to the fallen stump adjacent to him. With shaky hands, I motioned to Teddy to undo a molten lava cake from his belt. We unpinned the toothpick from the center and threw them. The explosions sent the brush up in flames as Fortune Cookies came screaming out, their cakelishna koff ’s falling from them as they came flailing towards us, like they’d been cooked too long at birth. I could hear the voices of my comrades, some sounded pained and some were shouting orders to return fire. My movements were interrupted as a round splintered the log ahead of me. I moved farther. As I reached the log, our communications man flopped over the log panting and grunting in pain. He was holding his side as his syrup oozed from his stomach “You’re Hit!” I screamed to him over the blaze of fire. “I-I know! I received orders to ask you for the Broken Arrow Codes!” His breathing was slowing, (Before I continue, Broken Arrow is a top-level emergency when a battalion is on the verge of being over run. All airborne units in the arsenal are sent to aid in destroying the enemy.)I nodded and grabbed his phone set, and pounded the dial. “Broken Arrow on coordinates 421-00 niner!” I slammed the phone down and covered deep into the tree, and leaned up. I felt conflicted as I fired my C-16 rifle into the brush, the armor penetrated sprinkles and shredded the twizzler leaves. Knowing that if I hit someone, a life would be taken from this earth, but I continued firing. My adrenaline pumped as I emptied my clip. Suddenly, from my peripheral vision I saw Teddy lurch backwards, his rifle fell to the ground. “Teddy! No! Teddy..” I sprinted towards him, but was suddenly knocked to the ground. My arm burned as I stumbled to stand back up when suddenly, the faint roar of engines were audible over

16 • Sterling Cub Reporter • November 2014

the gunfire. The Sour Patch Pilot flew over almost as fast as a blink, but their payloads of atomic fireballs fell agonizingly slow. I realized something tragic... The pilots let loose too soon and we were in the radius. I picked up Teddy as soon as I reached him and begin sprinting back towards the airfield. While running, I stumbled and fell against a log, throwing Teddy out of my sight. The fireballs hit and went off, and then the world erupted. I awoke in a bed, my head bandaged and my arm in a cast. I could not see out of my right eye, but I was able to see the bandages. I let out a sigh of relief in knowing I had my vision, but I went cold, for I could not feel my left leg. I lifted my head slightly and stared blankly at the unoccupied space below my knee. The image of the bloody bandage left an eternal scar on my brain. I couldn’t help but vomit into the waste bin next to my bed. I was feeling too much shock to comprehend as the doctor walked in. He was patient as he waited for me to lift my head and wipe the bile from my face. “Lt. Caner, I’m Dr. K... I’ve got some news for you that may be hard to bare...” He sat in the chair on the left of my bed. “During the fire fight that took place, Sgt. Theodore Marks was injured in the line of duty. When the medic reached you both, your wounds were severe and they medevaced you to the field hospital where we tried to save you both... Sgt. Marks didn’t survive the flight...” I felt cold, “No, this was a lie. He was lying!” I thought to myself, but deep down inside I knew it was true. My friend was gone and I never got to say goodbye. The doctor placed a hand on my shoulder. His eyes were deep set, as if he hadn’t slept for a good many hours. “You are in Fort Toblerone, California. You are home.” I sighed deeply as I looked around the room, emotionless. Although I was home, there would always be the feeling of loss to me, I knew it. I came to Viet-“Nom” a man ready to serve his duty, and came home a shell. The man who visited that forsaken place died there, and there he shall remain.