I was 18 years old. I had flunked out of college my first year. I had no job. I felt I was going to be drafted as soon as I turned 19, regardless of the lottery. I joined the US Army before I turned 19. I was in basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky when my mother came to visit and told me my draft lottery number was 7. I thought at that time that I was where I was supposed to be. I served my tour of duty proudly in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division. I received my honorable discharge from the Army at age 21 and returned to college using the GI Bill.
