It was with a heart made heavy by mixed emotions, and no small portion of anxiety for government bureaucracy, that I returned, fourteen years to the day, like a creature returning to its hatchery to spawn and die, to Clothing Stores to return my issued kit.
There my burdens, literal and administrative, were checked off, like a ledger of old sins being tallied up on Judgement Day.
- Belt, trousers 1
- Pack Assembly 1
- Shirt, combat 2
- Coat, cold weather, combat 1
- Coat, wet weather, combat 1
And on it went.
Each article, made intimate by long usage, named, checked on a computer, and tossed into a bin until this, my last duty to King and Country was complete.
"That's it, sir. You're done." said the Stores Clerk.
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