A military career begins with the first bite of food
Every young recruit, the moment he first steps into the barracks, he will always feel an unprecedented new and exciting. This moment means that they will officially bid farewell to the lives of ordinary people and start a new military career. At this important turning point in their lives, the first meal that recruits enjoy often contains the army's ardent hope and endless care for them.
Although this meal is just a simple beginning, it is full of bits and pieces of life in the barracks. In some parts of the north, for example, recruits are greeted with a plate of fragrant wontons. These long strips of pasta not only symbolize the smooth sailing and smooth sailing of the recruits' military career, but also symbolize that they will unite and fight side by side in the future. The lean meats and vegetables in the wonton fillings represent the nutritionally balanced and rich food prepared by the army for the recruits.
In some southern units, the recruits' first meal may be greeted with a fragrant, soft and glutinous Sichuan-style braised pork. This dish is fragrant and tempting, which means that the recruits are about to embark on a road full of excitement and passion. And the carefully cooked stir-fry of seasonal vegetables blesses them to pay attention to health preservation and maintain high morale in the barracks life.
Not only that, when preparing the first meal for the recruits, many troops will also deliberately add some auspicious ingredients, such as fresh fruits and fresh vegetables, hoping that they can have a safe journey in their arduous military career. And at the end of this sumptuous meal, the recruits will also taste a bowl of hot old hen soup, warm and mellow, which seems to make them return to their warm hometown in an instant.
In addition to the taste itself, when the recruits enjoy their first meal, it is more of a solemn experience of ritual and identity change. Although it is still a group meal, every link reflects the discipline of barracks life. Recruits are required to follow a strict dining process, sit in an orderly manner, and learn proper dining etiquette. While enjoying the feast, they will appreciate the "hard" side of military life: not only to obey orders and follow the rhythm, but also to strictly control the way they eat. This high degree of discipline is precisely the basis for cultivating the quality of military personnel.
However, despite the rigor and orderliness of the process, the meal also showed the army's love for the recruits. The officers and soldiers in charge of catering will find out the special needs of each recruit in advance, such as religious beliefs, eating habits, etc., and carefully arrange the dishes that suit them. For recruits with certain food allergies, the room will provide alternatives; For sick or infirm recruits, priority will be given to their meals. This kind of meticulous care is a microcosm of the warmth of the big family in the barracks.
After the feast, the recruits naturally have to get used to the rules of the barracks, responsible for washing the dishes, wiping the tables, and learning how to cherish the food and cherish the fruits of the labor of their comrades. After the smoke cleared and the noise gradually subsided, only a few soldiers on duty were left in the room. They quietly cleaned up the leftovers, but they were also looking forward to the new recruits eating the taste of "home" tomorrow.
Yes, the first meal is not only a hearty experience, but also a first lesson for recruits to integrate into military life. It carries the affirmation and expectations of the recruits, and is the first warm gift that the recruits receive after officially joining the military family. From the neat and uniform cooking process to the dishes full of local characteristics and deep meanings, while satisfying the taste buds, the recruits also felt the discipline and humanity of military camp life.
For the army, this special "good start" is a kind of earnest sustenance - I hope that the recruits can move forward with determination, strengthen their physique and climb the peak bravely in their future military careers; I also wish them never forget their original aspirations, keep their mission in mind, and be the important weapon of the country and the shadow of the people at all times. As the saying goes, "military orders are as cool as a mountain", but this meal has undoubtedly sown the seeds of the original intention for the recruits, and their military journey has just begun.