A touch of war

Jay Audin was from Waterville, Maine. I knew him, back in my NROTC days. He was cool. We liked talking about Maine and the Maine way of doing things, and laughed about the fact that everyone from Maine had a friend in common. Ours was a girl named Laurie.

Major Jay Audin, USMC, died in Iraq in a helicopter crash, earlier today. It was at least fifteen years since the last time I spoke to him, and probably about that long since I gave him more than a passing thought. And yet, it's all so very personal now.

I look outside, and there's spring. The mud is back, and I smell the sweet rot of old grass, and see the snow pulling away. And I think about Jay Audin at Indoc laughing about mud season as the fifth season in Maine, and me saying that was Southern Maine -- that Northern Maine just had two seasons -- winter and the Fourth of July Weekend.

He was a good guy, and loved the Marines. According to online stuff I've found, he was selected to the the Marine One pilot, ferrying the President in his Helicopter. He also taught night flying to Marine Aviators. He loved his life and his career.