The Soldier: Alien in the Delta Series

＂We can’t serve you in here. You will have to go out back to order and pick up your food.＂

I loved The United States of America. But I discovered early that my country did not love me back. I had to leave the USA and live in Germany to find equality. After we completed our Air Force basic training, six buddies, four white and two black young men from Detroit, headed back home on the train. Someplace in Texas, the train stopped so that we could stretch our legs and get a snack. We wore pristine, new blue uniforms, proudly representing the United States Air Force. We all got off the train and went to the restaurant to get something to eat. Before we sat down, the waiter said as he looked at our black faces. ＂We can’t serve you in here. You will have to go out back to order and pick up your food.＂ We just got back on the train without eating and sat in silence. We began basic training as six buddies from Detroit. Upon our return, we experienced very different treatment from the same country to which we had pledged to give our lives.

Born and raised in the South, I had experienced discrimination before. Still, this time, it hurt me deeply because I was dressed in my US Air Force uniform and prepared to die for our country. Yet, my fellow countryman still would not serve us. American service members in uniform should never have to experience that kind of treatment! Unfortunately, Jim Crow Laws were the law in the Southern United States in 1962.

The Soldier - Alien the Deltais the second book in the series. The short stories are compelling, thoughtful, and humorous about various experiences in the US Air Force, international travel, romance, and interracial marriage.

The three book series represent different periods. They include The Child, The Soldier, and The Adult. Thankful Strother’s story of his life experiences is moving and profound. He does a remarkable job of bringing the reader into his world. ＂While reading his stories, I felt like I was in the room with him as he shared the details of all his adventures.＂