After the completion of training at Marine Corps boot camp, I got allocated for my first duty at Station 29 Palms. The base whose location is California happens to be the most hated. We took a taxi with my colleagues to base on arrival at the Palm Springs Airport. We got dropped at the special operations command office base where I could spot a couple of lieutenants and major generals. One of the officers welcomed us and directed us to the location of squad leaders. All the squad leaders who were sergeants would be in charge of us at the base. They all looked friendly apart from one seated at the conference chair holding a book in his hand and a dip in his mouth.
Beaman was this built up masculine guy, a clear impression that he was a friend to the gym. His face could compare to a stature from a stone. The muscular body gave a testament to his tall frame body. He was baldheaded, and his eyes wrinkled that made him older than his actual age. It came to my realization later during training that he was only 24 years of age. The first encounter with him created some fear of the unknown and nervousness.
All the squad leaders picked their desired number from the recruits. It happened that I got selected by Mr. Beaman. The man had a strange appearance that looked like that of a convict. He was tall, and his hair was so dry, straw-like and wizened. Sergeant Beaman had a distinctive beard, always looked sad and wayworn eyes. Whenever he got angry, he seemed much taller than he was with piercing eyes. His beard could compare to that of a lunatic due to its unkempt nature and spittle-flecked nature. From the look of his appearance, one would judge him to be an indeed unpleasant character. He took me and introduced me to the rest of squad members. The entire squad characterized kind-hearted people. The commanding tone he used matched his personality and that of a commander. I remember after his introduction to my colleagues, him telling me that he would get mad if I were not going to be a quick learner.
My experience with Beaman lasted for six months which entailed the official training duration before deployment. Training commenced immediately on the second day where we got directed on how to create patrolling formations in the desert, dismantling and assembling the Semi-Automatic Sniper Rifle (SASR). He taught us the right breathing techniques, how to fire rifles, and using radio communication to planes (commonly referred to as the birds). Mr. Beaman taught us navigation in the dark and improvising explosives with limited resources during emergencies.
Mr. Beaman background was Cuban Mexican. He always used low pitch voice that did not match his character and appearance. He was a no-nonsense man and never smiled. I recall the only time I saw him smile was when he threw me out of Osprey (a type of aircraft) during training at one night when he noticed I got nervous and terror infringed me.
Beaman portrayed a reserved personality. He rarely shared his feelings and emotions and used a polite tone in his low tone voice but was fearless in executing his duties as a trainer. The desire by Beaman for me to be a quick learner failure of which would make him get mad indicated a quick to anger character. He talked about himself and showed friendship and care only when on a mission. It is during a mission and distressful situations that he exposed calmness. At one point during a mission, the enemy was firing at us, but he seemed composed and never freaked out. He just started smoking and gave directions on the next move to complete our mission. He was an honest man during the entire training period, and we trusted him with our lives for we depended entirely on his directions during missions. When I first met him, I created a wrong impression about him due to his appearance just to learn later about his kindness. For a person with no experience about him, one could see him as intimidating due to his size and his stone face that made him look angry even when he was not.
The habits and hobbies of Beaman ranged from reading books and smoking. He read books during his off times and when not occupied. For instance, the first day I met him, he was seated in a conference chair reading a book with a dip in his mouth. Smoking was evident during distressful situations as could help him calm down and give appropriate direction. He also had a character of cursing every time he talked.
The encounter with Beaman as his trainee made me emerge as marine special forces. I learned a lot about him during the deployment to Afghanistan since it was only missions where he seemed friendly and caring. After missions, each crew members got similar tattoos (AIII). His training made me more confident, responsible, proud of my job and at the same time taught me new techniques. The care he gave the entire squad made me cherish and respect him.
