Two Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

It is now that time in my deployment when the core group of monkeys begins to disband. We started with five monkeys plus a Monkey in Charge and of the original five there are now two of us. Capt S, unexpectedly, left today, which is a good thing for he and his family. I wish him safe travels as he rides that big vine in the sky home. It is amazing how quickly an office dynamic can change when just one person or a group leave. Our future monkey generation has also departed the WTF Headquarters. Captain Ch or as we call him Dave Travis and Lt Freedom have left for greener pastures at the Embassy. Whiskey (me) and Foxtrot (Capt N) are all that is left of the monkeys, both past and present. Captain S, myself and Foxtrot are all members of the original trimverate of fun as we called ourselves in the early days. Thank goodness only five days remain. In a tribute to the founding fathers of fun and the monkeys I have posted this picture. I am very happy to be finishing up this deployment but I am also bit meloncholy at the same time. The bonds forged in a setting such as this are strong and irreplacable. Another adventure in my life will be closing and with everyone scattered across the country it is highly likely that I will not see the monkeys again. There are obligitory talks of reunions and keeping in touch, but it is unlikely as people get busy with life. I consider myself very blessed and lucky to work with such a diverse and talented group of men and women. Although I am not a big fan of GreenDay there is one song that is very appropriate for this setting. It is called Time of Your Life. The chorus reads: "It is something unpredictable but in the end is right I hope you had the time of your life. It is not a question but a lesson learned in time, it is something unpredictable but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life." I think that those words are very true not only with the mission but with the people in it. I wish each and every monkey reading this safe travels. Keep the chin strap tight and I will see you when the clouds come home.