Eric Shinseki grew up in Hawaii, and was commissioned out of West Point, class of 1965. After Airborne and Ranger schools, he was sent to the 25th Infantry Division, which deployed almost immediately as a unit to Vietnam. Because he had missed the Basic Officer Course for administrative reasons, he was trained on technical skills by a motivated NCO aboard ship, who had told him, “right now you’re the biggest liability our unit has and I suggest that we do something about it.” So they did. His first assignment as a young, inexperienced second lieutenant was as the artillery forward observer with a rifle company, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division, the Golden Dragons. He vividly recalls calling in his first air strike, and its powerful impact, “You had this sense that there was somebody available, watching over you.” After being badly wounded, he spent eight months at Tripler Army Medical Center. In 1969, as a captain, Shinseki returned to Vietnam for a second tour, initially serving with the defense command at Phu Bai, and then as the commander of A Troop, 3rd Squadron, 5th Cavalry, 9th Infantry Division, the Black Knights. He was injured in a minefield, and this time spent 15 months in hospital. Secretary Shinseki shares lessons he learned on communication and leadership, he describes fissures that can become cracks and then ruptures under the stress of combat, and he remembers the excellence of young American Soldiers, and the and the sacrifices they made for our nation.