Letter from September 3, 2008

Mom and Dad:
Hey again. I haven't had a chance to write, they specifically told us not to for some reason. I started basic on the 29th and I'm now laying in bed on the end of day 3. I'm ver sore...Lots of physical work, as you know. I'm carrying around an M4 assault rifle with me wherever I go now, it's a little weird but they're trying to get us used to it. So far we haven't done much substantial training, mostly just PT, getting smoked, getting yelled at, and standing/marching in formation. Tomorrow we do the confidence course.
A friend of mine, his name is Buck is having trouble with the PT...He's only 19, but he's having heart problems, and they might send him home. He passed out once already due to it.
Apparently mail takes a while (1-2 weeks) to get here, so please, write me as often as you can, I will do the same. We got 5 minutes of phone time today, but you didn't pick up :-( I hope you got my message.
Could you guys maybe take a family photo and send it to me? I love and miss you all a lot.
PFC Hopper
PS-I'm a squad leader