They Ordered Him To Write His Own Death Letter 😳
A veteran recounts being ordered to write a death letter at age 18 during military service, a moment that made the reality of combat truly sink in. He wrote letters to his girlfriend and parents, and reflects on what an 18-year-old motivated soldier would have written. The experience marked a turning point in his understanding of the danger he was facing.
Summary
In this short clip, a veteran recalls a pivotal moment during his military deployment when his platoon commander ordered every soldier to write a death letter — a letter to be delivered to loved ones in the event of their death. At the time, the speaker was 18 years old and had already been exposed to some realities of combat, including witnessing shrapnel wounds and hearing explosions and stories of casualties, but writing the death letter was the moment that made the situation feel truly real.
He wrote two letters: one to his girlfriend at the time and one to his parents. All letters were then turned over to the platoon commander for safekeeping. When asked if he still has the letters, he says he does not. Reflecting on what he wrote, he describes it as typical of a motivated 18-year-old soldier — patriotic and emotionally straightforward, likely expressing sentiments like fighting for his country and his team, and expressing love and missing his family.
Key Insights
- The speaker describes being ordered by his platoon commander to write a death letter, which he found shocking and surreal at the time.
- The speaker identifies the act of writing the death letter — not the combat itself — as the moment he truly understood the life-threatening reality of his deployment.
- He wrote letters to both his girlfriend and his parents, covering the two most significant personal relationships in his life at the time.
- All death letters were collected and held by the platoon commander, suggesting this was a standard military procedure rather than a personal choice.
- Reflecting on the content, the speaker believes his 18-year-old self wrote something patriotic and emotionally simple, focused on love of country, team, and family — consistent with the mindset of a motivated young soldier.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] Remember one day Platoon commander comes in and he's like, "Everyone's going to write a their death letter." Jesus Christ. >> And I'm like, "Are you kidding me?" Cuz at the time I didn't know. I saw some guys get shrapnel wounds. I heard the stories of the heads. I seen and hear the explosions. But then I'm told to write my own death letter. And I had a girlfriend at the time, so I wrote a letter to her. My parents were in my life. I wrote a letter to my parents. We all turned our letters over to our platoon commander. That's when I knew [ __ ] was [ __ ] real. Do you still have…
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