R.V. Burgin > Quotes

“What sticks with me now is not so much the pain and terror and sorrow of the war, though I remember that well enough. What really sticks with me is the honor I had of defending my country, and of serving in the company of these men.”
― R.V. Burgin

“liberty wearing our khakis and combat boots. We called them “boondockers.” Florence hadn’t even been expecting me. I looked all over town for her and finally found her with”
― R.V. Burgin, Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific

“if a Marine isn’t complaining, he isn’t happy.”
― R.V. Burgin, Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific

“The first sergeant, gunny sergeant, he pretty well runs the company. Whatever he said went. He’d just say, “Lieutenant, I need to have a word with you.” A wise lieutenant would listen. Because if he didn’t the sergeant would go to the captain and say, “Hey, we have a problem with Lieutenant So-and-So. This is what he’s doing, and it’s not right. And he’s not listening to me.” Before long it would be fixed. The word of a sergeant carried a lot of weight. Yes, it did.”
― R.V. Burgin, Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific

“An amtrac at sea wallows like a buffalo. The flat-bottomed Higgins boats could do twelve knots. We barely managed four and a half”
― R.V. Burgin, Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific