This is about the time I was in the school cadet band. It was kind of an accident how I enrolled in it. At first, I wanted to get out desperately. But I’m no quitter, so I stuck around to see how things would go.
The starting weeks were a little scary. There was PT, exercising, running, and sometimes worse. Especially when we had to change from PT kit to school uniform or vice versa, because there was always a count. By the end of the count, we had to be fully dressed, lined up, and the room had to be cleaned. Unsurprisingly, we always failed at it.
Then began the music training. I tried a few options piccolo, clarinet, trumpet, and eventually landed on trombone, that long one that slides. I wasn’t alone; one of my long-time best friends also got the trombone. I could barely play the octave. Initially, I only played some rhythms, then memorized parts I learned from seniors.
Junior Year & First Camp
In my junior year, there were 18 juniors altogether. For a band, that is a lot, because the squad size is 25, meaning only 7 seniors, including sergeant, corporals, and lance corporals.
My first camping experience was a duty camp. We were the band that provided music for the other platoons. While being the duty band has its own perks, for a first-time camping experience, it wasn’t easy.
I remember I got gastritis during the stay. Not knowing exactly what it was, I somehow guessed and got half a pill of Digene. My best friend managed to steal a dextrose from the first aid kit, and we both shared it before sleeping. I felt good the next day.
Being a band full of newbies, we had a huge problem continuing our music for long periods. Our senior corporal was amazing, he didn’t miss a note, and through everything, he never diminished his sound. We juniors tried our best to support him.
Training for Assesment camp
After the duty camp, it was time to practice for the assesment camp. After the first day of introducing us to the PT cycle, I could barely get out of bed. My whole body was aching, especially around the waist and back. I thought that would be it for the whole week.
But when we got to the music room: “No music today… get into your PT kits.”
And we did the same routine for the second day. Eventually, I got used to it. When I started, I couldn’t even do a single pull-up. Now I can casually do 20 when we warm up.
Our drills got better. From time to time, we played for school events. And my voice kept getting louder and louder.
The Real Deal
Then there was the real deal. We practiced day and night. When we had free time, we did lessons or drama, whatever we were supposed to do. Most of the time, we only got around 3–4 hours of sleep when it was close to the competition.
When we ate something, we shared it among our whole set, the juniors. With all the harsh training, our morale was high. We were closer than just friends. And most of all, no one in the school would dare to mess with anyone, because we were a huge set, a gang of 18.
By this time, I was really enjoying cadet life. I started liking drill and PT more than the others. From time to time, I was given responsibilities, and I got my card, my nickname, and probably without realizing it, the inner leader in me got better.
Camp Life & Leadership
When the time came, our music was better, PT even better, and drill one of the best (actually, we were placed 4th in drill). Taking a shower was a privilege in those days, but before inspections, we made sure we were well cleaned and groomed.
My best friend was the sergeant buddy. Later, he became the sergeant of the same band, so I guess he had it coming. Making the sergeant costume is no easy task, it has to be really good. So often, I would finish my kit quickly and then help with part of my friend’s kit as well. They used to call me the “sergeant buddy assistant.”
The Toe Incident
However, during the camp, on one of the mornings, I hit my small toe after brushing my teeth, just a small skin wound. I didn’t care, and there was no time to care. I quickly put on my boots.
During the day, it sometimes hurt, but I ignored it. At the end of the day, when I took my boot off, oh my god, it was no longer a skin wound. Over the next few days, it gradually got bigger and bigger due to boot cuts, and eventually my small toe was just wound, at least from the top view. I went to the medical center, but the boot cuts were not forgiving.
Results & Aftermath
That time, we were placed 14th, as I remember. We won a prize for one of the sub-events, though I don’t remember which one. After a while, my wound healed and my skin complexion returned. I do have somewhat lighter complexion, but during those days, my skin got so dark that some people couldn’t recognize me. And it took some time to grow my hair back.
The next time, since there were only limited seniors, I became a lance corporal, the only one from my set, but others really helped me a lot. Hopefully, I did my best in the role.
By the way, with great power comes great responsibility. It wasn’t easy. We also had two juniors for trombone. My partner was really good at the instrument; I was kind of struggling.
This time, we placed 9th, I think. I gained real experience and became serious about responsibility and leadership, which definitely played a huge role later, for example, when I was a representative for the CSE 23 batch.
Closing
Even though I have some international medals, I still like to mention that I was in the cadet band, because it kind of brings me closer to complete.
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