What's going on everyone, Welcome to another edition of Confessions of a Native Son, I'm your host "IRON" Mike Steadman. I'm a Marine Corps Veteran, Entrepreneur, and Aspiring author, who enjoys thought-provoking and engaging dialogue about race, culture, and business. In the following episode, I finally close out the Always Faithful series, where I share my experience as an African-American Infantry Officer in the United States Marine Corps. Talking about this material has been physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausting for me, with that being said, I'm happy to share it with you all. Between this episode and the 3 previous ones, I've logged over 10 hours of audio on my experience, which is humbling and amazing at the same time. For me, this series has been very therapeutic for me, and I hope you've been able to learn and grow from it. After recording and releasing the 5-hour behemoth that is Ep.22, where I detail my Afghan war experience and getting relieved in combat, I knew I needed some support-up for this final episode of this series. In order to assist me, I brought back my brother from another mother, Mikoto Yoshida, from Episode 18. "Confessions of An Asian-American." Miko interviews me about what is like returning home from Afghanistan After being relieved, how I managed to cope, and what led to my return to my Battalion after a brief stint with the Marine Corps Boxing Team (If you even want to call it that). I confess to Miko that I felt I didn't have what it took to lead Marines anymore and how I may or may not have been suffering from some form of PTSD, ultimately resulting in a fear of leading again. I managed to push through the shame and embarrassment and ultimately rebuild myself, while simultaneously helping others. The truth is none of that what have not been possible if it wasn't for one amazing Company Commander and a peer group of lieutenants who helped me regain my courage. If you've been following me this far, this is an episode you don't to miss. I also can assure not 5 hours either. As always, thank you for spending your time with me and I hope you enjoy the show.