Lessons from the Army - The Motor Pool Walk

I was thinking about something this morning as I was writing a comment for my blog, Fitness After 40, and it triggered a new line of thought.

I was writing about safe driving for seniors, and that reminded me about when I was a truck driving instructor, then when I was a truck driver, and then when I was in the Army. That led me to the motor pool walk.

My wife and I call this a "rabbit trail". It's more representative of my thought process than hers as she's much more focused than I am, but we both realize that the subject is about to change when one of us looks at the other and says, "rabbit trail".

Anyway, in the Army, I spent a lot of time in motor pools, checking on equipment, training or supervising soldiers, or as an equipment operator myself. They can be dangerous places if you are not paying attention. That is why a company commander I served under, or perhaps it was a first sergeant, stressed what he called "the motor pool walk".

Basically, for safety's sake, you keep your head up, your eyes moving, and pay attention to all that is going on around you.

This was a good lesson for me in many aspects of army life, not just the motor pool. We did a lot of dangerous things, and simply paying attention was worth the effort when you consider the alternative!

Later, in the civilian world, I became a truck driver for a while and eventually a truck driving instructor. Once again, as I moved through equipment yards, strange facilities, truck stops, and even over the road, "heads up and eyes moving" was a good mantra.

When you read or listen to motivational speakers, they too often describe in their own way what I would define as "the motor pool walk". When we as soldiers had to move across an open area, some target or goal would be selected to walk towards, but it would still be necessary to look around to see what was going on and identify any potential threat or danger. The person looking at his or her feet was almost certain to veer off course and more likely to wander into a dangerous situation.

As I aged, I became aware that it was a little more difficult to walk, drive, even concentrate (although that has been an ongoing problem of mine since grade school). However, I reverted to consciously imposing "the motor pool walk" as a condition of any activity, and it helped immensely. I also learned that many seniors who are experiencing loss of balance often have a habit of looking down at the ground in front of them.

Not only does this hamper their ability to move safely and surely at the moment, but studies have also shown that it actually contributes to poor balance and more frequent falls. As the studies of mental exercise progress, it has become obvious to many researchers that keeping your head up, eyes moving, and thinking about what is going on around you actually helps the brain retain its ability to make decisions, problem solve, improve balance and keep you out of trouble.

It's amazing that one little lesson can last so long and have such a profound affect on one's life.

I never have been to Kenya in my life!

My wife has been after me to write my memoirs, and this is my feeble attempt to comply with her wishes. She thinks I tell funny, entertaining, and enlightning stories about places I have been, people I have known, and things I have done.

However, I contend that while these stories can be fun, they are best for spur-of-the-moment situations where they can be used to liven up the conversation, offer a different insight, or just, as mentioned above, entertain the listener.

In fact, I cannot normally produce these things from memory...they just pop out when some receptor in my brain recognizes a link which can be exploited. Thus, friends and family, and a few total strangers, are usually warned by one of these phrases: "I know a story about that..." or "You know, that reminds me..." or something similar.

I guess it's a touch of the Irish in me that likes to tell a story. I always harken back to that "dear little priest", Father Cunningham, who used to both amuse and upset the nuns by telling us mystery stories or old Irish folk tales, when he was supposed to be teaching us religion. He often told us stories about amteur detective Father Brown, a character created by Gilbert Keith Chesterton, in that lovely Irish brogue when I was in grade school at St. John's elementary in Warrington, Florida in the 50's. It was probably those very stories which prompted me to spend hour after hour reading mystery stories, western tales, and science fiction books checked out of the Pensacola Public Library.

You see, talking about telling stories reminded me about Father Cunningham, which reminded me about "The Quiet Man" with John Wayne, which reminded me about the time John Wayne filmed part of "The Wings of Eagles" near my home in Pensacola and onboard Pensacola Naval Air Station, where my father worked for 30+ years, which reminded me of all the times I was onboard NAS Pensacola myself as man and boy, including the very spots where some of the scenes were filmed....which reminds me of my own career in the U. S. Army....

You see how it goes!

As mentioned in the title of this post, I have never been to Kenya in my life, so why the title?

In the great British comedy, "As Time Goes By", one of the lead characters, Lionel Hardcastle (Geoffrey Palmer), has written an autobiography with the uninspiring title, "My Life in Kenya". When asked in one episode what the book is about, he responds, "My life in Kenya"!

In the show, all who read the book, even those who love him the most agree that the book, about things which matter to him and which have made him the man he is, are really boring to read.

That's how this blog will probably wind up.

It will be boring for the most part, interesting or funny at some points (I hope), frightening or enlightning at others. It will allow me to write down, in some vaguely autobiographical manner, the things that have happened to me or which I have learned in my 64 years on this planet.

Well, that's enough for the first installment. I hope to add to this daily, but am sure, based on past performances, that there will be lapses in that plan.

However whichever day you choose to happen by, I will always wish you....

Have a great day!

Donovan Baldwin
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Over 40 or getting there? Check out my other blog, Fitness after 40.