Best job in the world

  • Published
  • By Maj. Sean K. McMurray
  • 736th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron commander
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  I recently moved from one squadron to another and was fortunate to take part in a change of command ceremony.

It provided an excellent opportunity to reflect on the past two years of my Air Force life, and it caused me to come to a major realization.

As I told my squadrons, both old and new, I felt like I had the best job in the world. I had always enjoyed being an aircraft maintenance officer, but this was more than just enjoying my job. I had the best job in the world.

I said this for two reasons. First, my job and my way of life had purpose. Every day I got up and came to work, I knew that, in some small way, I was contributing to a mission that spanned the globe.

It is a mission to spread freedom across the world. It is a mission to bring humanitarian aid to those who need it. A mission to project force across the globe when freedom and peace were threatened. My profession had purpose.

Second, I got the privilege of working with people who had dedicated their lives to something greater than themselves. Whether they were military or civilian, whether they had served four years or 20, they served the Air Force and our country faithfully and selflessly.

Simply put, you didn't find people like this every day - except perhaps in the Air Force. So, as I said farewell to my previous squadron and hello to my new one, I knew that these two factors would stay the same and continue to motivate me on a daily basis.

I had an important mission in my old squadron, but my new squadron's mission was equally important. I had made life-long friendships in my old squadron, but looked forward to more of the same in my new squadron.

This phenomenon is not unique to just me or to only particular people in the Air Force. This phenomenon is not reserved for squadron commanders. This phenomenon is something that all of us are part of.

I'm sure each and every one of us can think of a world event that we played a role in as Air Force members, i.e. the Global War on Terror or Humanitarian Aid to Haiti.

Additionally, I'm sure that each and every one of us can recite several names of life-long friends made while serving in the Air Force. This is not the norm for your typical 9-5 job.

As I often like to remind people, less than 1% of the population in this country serves in the United States Armed Forces. Not quite one in a million, but not far from it, either.

Each one of us provides something critical to mission accomplishment. Each of us gets to come to work every day and work with great Americans.

For these reasons, I hope I'm not the only one that feels like he has the best job in the world. Congratulations for being part of such a noble profession, and thanks for your service.