Author Matthew Heneghan

I thought about you today. To be honest, there isn’t a day that goes by where you’re not present with me. I carry you everywhere. Today, however, it was different. The spark that ignited my potent recall of you happened innocuously enough; I had just procured a tea and made…

There are many misconceptions about what it means to be a soldier, to be a veteran. Many people jump to thinking that you are a war-torn person immediately after hearing that you have served within the army. Upon learning that that may not be the case, you seemingly lose veteran…

Have you ever been so angry that your body didn’t know what to do? Stuck within a limbo of indecision and directionless thought? On that day, I was all of those things. The fibers of my muscles twitched and spasmed as if to be rioting beneath my skin. I could…

“Holy shit… RUN!” On a crisp fall afternoon some 22-years ago, that’s exactly what I commanded to my best friend, Drew. We were about to run for our lives. And to make things worse, I could not stop laughing… Before I get to what it was that had us fleeing…

I saw him again last night. Held him in my hands. It all came in like a rolling thunder. First, from afar. But soon, it was all that surrounded me. Pervading every aspect of my existence. My ears became punished by the crescendo of wailing jet turbines. I could feel…

“No, no, pin it! Just fucking pin it!”   The struggling engine of the aged Italian M40 coughed and choked to an asthmatic halt.   “Shit! Well, we’re done. We ain’t movin’.” The instructors gruff tone orated in defeat. I felt a sudden sting of shame as I was the…

Her lips slowly fell apart from one another as she absorbed what I had just said. A heft of agonizing realization coated the expression on her face. A sense of empathy started to slither along my spine while I watched her reaction unfold before me. It was however quickly vanquished…

“What can I get you, sad eyes?” The kind woman from behind the bar asks. I’m delayed in my response. Not because I am unsure of what I want, but because I know that I can only order so much of it at any given time. “Uh, bourbon, please.” “Sure…

It was early morning in the spring of 06. I was awake well ahead of my scheduled alarm. Not because of nightmares or a tireless struggle to sleep, but rather because there was a buoyancy of excitement and nervousness held within the deepest pit of my stomach. It was exam…