The Havok Journal | Military & Veteran News, Commentary, Culture

• In The Darkness We Can Still Find Hope September 24, 2026
  Last January I began working with a woman who struggled mightily throughout our sessions, but who nevertheless continued to meet with me. After she missed our session and not hearing from her one week, I learned that she had overdosed and died. Actually? She really died from despair. I have no idea if she “finally […]
  Shelly Harlow
• Families After War: Who Are You Supposed to Be Now? September 24, 2026
  By Britta Reque-Dragicevic This first appeared in Britta Reque-Dragicevic’s blog “Life After War” and is republished with the author’s permission. _________________________ For families after war, homecomings are joyous events. You are reunited with someone you love dearly. But what is not talked about as much is the mixed feelings and emotions families and veterans have […]
  Special Guest
• The Weight I Didn’t Pack September 24, 2026
  As you’re reading this, I’m driving east toward the North Carolina coast with my wife and the middle children of my siblings. I’m writing this less than eleven hours before it arrives in your inbox (if you’re subscribed). At the moment, I still haven’t packed for our week-long vacation. It’s not that I’m a procrastinator—I […]
  Stan Lake
• The Soul of a Man Does Violence to Itself September 23, 2026
  “The soul of a man does violence to itself.” — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, II.16 There are plenty of ways to get hurt in the Army. Some of them come with Purple Hearts. Some come with profiles, surgeries, or a lifetime supply of ibuprofen and stories about why your knees make sounds that knees probably shouldn’t […]
  Charles Faint
• My First Engagement with the Enemy September 23, 2026
  I don’t always know what will trigger a flashback of my deployment to Afghanistan, but today, it happened to be the song at the end of the 2020 Mulan movie titled, “Loyal Brave True” by Christina Aguilera. As cheesy as that might sound, hear me out. FLASHBACK: When one of the grunts shouted out the […]
  Lori Butierries