I found this old memory online today. It was a poem written by one of my Air Force basic training flight mates. The poem regards our time at basic training. Imagine 70-something women all sharing a space which no bigger *and actually smaller, I think * than the annex at Southwest Church of Christ in Austin! I cannot begin to count the number of times our Tech Sgt. Phillips yelled at us, "YOU NUM-NUMS!!" I think that was part of the inspiration for Angela to write this poem. Perhaps, I will remember some memories and share a little later on, but--for now--the poem written by Angela Kay Hubacek, our 'class clown' of Flight W077 from San Antonio, Texas:
To Sgt Phillips, With Love from Flight W077
I can remember all those people.
All those different faces.
With different personalities.
All from different places.
We didn't know what to expect
When we first arrived.
But I'm sure if we were honest,
I wasn't the only one who cried.
We were simply scared to death
Wanting to go home
But one thing kept us hangin' on
We were not alone.
All of us fought like cats and dogs
Never bonding together.
Screams were heard throughout the dorms
At the drop of a feather.
Looking back on the last six weeks,
I really am surprised
That all of us have made it through
Still with both our eyes.
We slowly learned to get along.
Apart, we could not do it.
But, it took a lot of time,
Trial, and error to prove it.
We learned things from each other
To help us stand proud and tall.
I even catch myself saying
That dreaded phrase, "Y'all."
We've shared a lot of grievances
We've shared a lot of joys.
The only thing we did not share
were those Air Force BOYS!
Graduation time is come
and we'll go our separate ways
But a little piece of everyone is in our hearts to stay!
Now I'm really proud to call
Everyone my friend
And no matter where we'll be--
We're NUM-NUMS to the END!!
--Angela K. Hubacek, from Seattle, Washington
