Early on, I showed up around 7:30 and there was a guy that was fully drunk and giving the table plenty of action. He was drinking Red Bulls and beer, so he was drunk AND full of energy. He left the table shortly after I arrived and I didn't have a chance to make any money off him. He left with his girlfriend and the $500 in chips that he had left and he said he was heading out to play some blackjack.
A guy named Mike came into his seat. I could tell that Mike was a good guy and struck up a conversation with him. He started working straight out of high school. He worked at a local car dealership in the area. He started as a salesman and then worked his way up to where he's not a finance consultant. Works 6 days a week and has a wife and two kids. He wore a Steve Bono Chiefs jersey. Now, most would say that's kind of silly because it's an old Chiefs player that's not even on the team anymore. What I see when I see people wearing old Chiefs jerseys is a person who has his priorities in order and doesn't waste his money buying a new jersey just because the names on the back of the jersey change.
Mike and I chatted for awhile and then a guy name Kyle sat down on the other side of me. Immediately, Mike leaned over to me and said that Kyle looked like a military man. I told Mike that if he was a military guy, God bless him. Mike did appear to be right because Kyle had a tight haircut that just screamed military.
Mike (to Kyle): Are you in the military?
Kyle: Yeah, Army Reserves.
Mike: Cool, my brother was in the military.
Kyle: Which branch?
Mike: He was in the Marines. Have you gone overseas at all yet?
Kyle: Nope, not yet. I'll get my chance soon enough.
Me: You say 'was'. Is he all finished with his time in the Marines or on leave?
Mike: No, he's actually passed on.
Me: Oh.
I just kind of left it at that and busied myself with playing the current poker hand. After a minute or so......
Mike: My brother was killed in Iraq on August 3rd, 2005.
Me: Oh, I'm sorry to hear that.
Mike: He was killed when an IED exploded next to his vehicle. August 3rd, 2005.....
He kept repeating the date. The date seemed to be etched in his mind. I later found out it was his only sibling and it was his older brother. He was probably a role model to him. Also, I could tell by the fact that he kept talking about it that he was very proud of his brother and the ultimate sacrifice that he made. He spoke about his brother and his death openly at the table. I could tell that he really wanted to tell about his brother.
While Mike and I were the only ones conversing, I happened to look up a couple of times and noticed that the rest of the table was quiet and listening to every word we said. The poker was secondary. Everyone was listening in an odd sort of reverence toward Mike and his brother. Some were probably people who support the war effort. Others were probably people who don't agree with everything about the war in Iraq. But at that moment, everyone didn't care about their beliefs. They were focused on Mike.
At some point, Mike switched the conversation over to Kyle. We found out that Kyle is a college student going to school in northern Missouri. He gets his school paid for by the U.S. government. He talked with us about the fact that he hadn't totally decided what he was going to major in. Really smart guy who will definitely have a great impact on people whatever he ends up doing.
I looked at the time and realized that it was past time to head home. I was so involved in chatting at the table that I totally lost track of time. I told Mike it was nice to meet him and wished Kyle well in college.
As a side note, I looked at the Internet when I got home and found the following info regarding Mike's brother......
Age: 26
Military Rank: Corporal
Unit/Location: Marine Forces Reserve’s 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Columbus, Ohio
Killed August 3rd, 2005 when their Amphibious Assault Vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device during combat operations south of Haditha, Iraq.
Iraq War Heroes page for Kenneth
