After 30 Years in the Military, an Army Colonel Asks: Who Am I Without the Uniform?

The morning after my retirement ceremony, I opened the closet and stared. For 30 years, the Army had made getting dressed simple. Although the look of the uniforms changed over my career, the functions remained the same: PT, duty, and dress.

Now, I faced choices every morning. What belt matched? Footwear? None of it felt like me. I put on a pair of khakis and a matching shirt, but it felt like a costume. Standing there, I felt like I was looking at someone I didn’t know. I realized the question wasn’t about clothes at all. It was much deeper and sharper: Who am I now, without the uniform?

Read full article in The War Horse: https://thewarhorse.org/army-colonel-life-without-the-uniform/