I have often sat in amazement during a Young Marines camping excursion observing fine young Americans trying their very best to make several nutritious meals for themselves without the outside assistance of...well, let’s just say she is pretty much the most important person at meal time...MOM.

A mom can do darn close to anything in a child’s mind, and if she can’t, dad can always be there to finish the job, or at least we hope. Sadly, people that are my age are finding it more and more difficult to go into the kitchen and prepare a meal from scratch. Nowadays, with microwave ovens and food that’s already precooked for the most part, we just have to “nuke” it for three and a half minutes and voila! However, when that highly motivated, truly dedicated, romping and stomping, can’t wait to go camping Young Marine is out in the elements away from the safety and security of their home, and most of all the kitchen, what are they expected to do? So, let’s talk about one of my favorite subjects...CHOW.

When I was still serving on active duty in the United States Marine Corps‘ Amphibious Reconnaissance Community, which wasn’t really all that long ago, and being single at the time like most of us were, the chow hall literally meant everything especially when you didn’t have a car to go off base to your favorite fast food restaurant. When out on training operations, the usual once a month routine that required us to be inserted several days prior to even the “grunts” leaving their rooms in the barracks where they sit around and clean weapons all day for that Friday inspection, me and the guys would get bored with just the usual military answer to field chow, the infamous MRE (Meals, Ready to Eat). So, being a good Team Leader, I always had a back up plan.

Priding myself with the ability to cook a hot meal for the guys so they would not feel deprived of their typical overly generous nutrition intake that would make a mother proud if they were sitting at the dinner table shoveling down all of her food and leaving no leftovers, the best meal to conjure up for a bunch of heathens like us was soup.

Okay, enough of the “war stories” from my days in the Corps. Let’s start talking about the subject I initially set out to chat about. As a Young Marine, whether SNCO, NCO, or lower in rank, eating on a camp out becomes probably one of the most important feats you will ever endeavor. Don’t always expect the adult staff member standing around making sure law and order is kept in the woods to cook each and every meal for you since all you wannabe chef‘s can only roast a wiener and wrap a potato in some aluminum foil and call it a well-rounded, nutritious meal. The Young Marines in my unit know better. We try to mentally assist them several drills in advance to develop a plan on what to cook. From that moment, till they actually get to the campsite, it’s up to them to do what some Gunny in a Hollywood movie once said, “...Marines have to improvise, adapt and overcome.” That is why I say that soup is by far the finest and most trouble-free meal to make that will not only impress your fellow peers, no matter what their rank may be, but the adults too. I know that most of us will sleep easier at night knowing that you actually ate something more nutritious then a Twinkie and a can of cold Spaghetti-O’s.

So, the next time you go on a camp out and you only have a few bucks left in your pocket from the allowance that mom and dad so graciously gave you, think about packing ingredients for making soup and enjoy the expedition.