“West Point was hard, physically, emotionally and academically,” Halstead recalled. “We were constantly being tested to see if we had what it takes.” During her second summer there, Halstead and her classmates were sent for RECONDO (RECONnaissance and CommanDO) training.
One goal of the training was to learn to survive in an unfamiliar and possibly hostile environment. The training took place at Camp Buckner, an isolated camp on the outskirts of the Academy. Cadets were assigned to squads and told to line up single-file. Special Forces leaders distributed a few scant supplies and provisions that each squad would have to live on for several days. One item was a live chicken.
I was the only female cadet in my squad and the last one in line. One of the Special Forces leaders stood at the front of the line holding the live chicken by its neck. The cadet that was handed the chicken was responsible for killing, cleaning and cooking it. The Special Forces leader feigned handing it off to a few of the cadets who were before me in line, but waited until I reached the front of the line and then thrust the live bird into my face. There is no doubt in my mind that I was singled out in this case because I was a woman. Our squad was a team and judged as such. I could read the concerned looks on my squad mates’ faces as they worried that I may not have what it takes to kill, skin and cook the bird. What they didn’t know was growing up in the country I was exposed to this and wasn’t scared at all.
As our squad sat around the fire eating the chicken, the Special Forces leader came over to the site. He grabbed our garbage bag and pulled out the chicken’s heart and liver that I had discarded while cleaning the bird. He marched over to me and, holding out the heart in one palm and the liver in the other, barked at me, “These are edible. You do not throw out anything that your squad can eat! Do you understand? You have a choice: to eat one now. And, oh, by the way, you can eat these raw.” I knew I had to eat one. Otherwise another member of the squad would be singled out, and I would lose any possible chance to earn their trust and respect and would fatally fracture the team. I made a quick assessment and decided I could probably swallow the heart whole, but not the liver. So I took the heart from his outstretched palm, put it in my mouth and swallowed hard. I went way up with my male peers after this.
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