I boarded my connecting flight in Atlanta, Georgia, and settled into my window seat, ready to take a short nap on the last leg of my journey.
When my seatmate sat down, we exchanged smiles and greeted one another. Then he got busy talking to two young men across the aisle, and I quickly ascertained they were young Marine recruits headed to Parris Island, South Carolina, to start basic training. It was clear from their conversation that they were feeling some apprehension about what they were about to face.
When the opportunity presented itself, I asked my seatmate where he was from. He said he was from New Jersey, from a large family with numerous sisters. He confided that there was always a lot of spirited yelling going on in their house growing up, so he thought he’d be OK during basic training—at least for the yelling part of it.
