Chapter 3
As Henry shared the news, Hawkeye and Trapper were left dumbstruck for a moment. Hawkeye found his voice first. "Henry, that's fantastic!"
"It's terrific," Trapper added. "Congratulations! We need to give you the biggest send-off in history!"
"You can't," Henry sighed. "I guess this is a lesson to all the people who don't open their mail on time. I leave today."
Hawkeye and Trapper could only stare. It was all so sudden, so final, with so much to be done.
"You've got a lot to do," Hawkeye finally informed him.
"We'll help," Trapper volunteered.
"Yeah, we'll be at your disposal. What do you want us to do?"
"Right, well, um, let's see now. First, best tell."
"Here sir."
"Radar," Henry finished his sentence.
Knowing that now was not a time when they would be needed, Hawkeye and Trapper exited quietly.
"Take a seat, Radar," Henry said. He was not looking forward to telling Radar of his latest news.
Nothing got past Radar. "What's up, sir?"
"Radar, I'm going home," Henry smiled slightly. "I got my discharge."
Radar looked up. "That's great, sir," he said gleefully. "When do you leave?"
This would be the hardest part. "Today, Radar. I leave today." On seeing the young man's face drop, he added, "I'm sorry, Radar. I."
"Nothing to be sorry about, sir," Radar interrupted in a brisk, serious voice. "I'll begin organising things straight away." He left the room, almost running.
Henry sighed. He didn't blame Radar for running out. Henry had been like a father to him, and in return he saw Radar as a son. After losing his own father suddenly once, Radar was about to lose a second father again, suddenly.
He sighed again. Henry's greatest desire was to go home, to leave the war and get out of the nut farm that was Korea, but it had its price. It meant leaving behind the people who had made it tolerable, the people who he looked on at as a second family.
Realising that he had so much to do in so little time, he got up to start packing his things.
An hour later, Henry had the belongings in his office boxed and outside waiting to be picked up. He was about to make a start on his tent when the phone rang.
"M*A*S*H 4077th, Colonel Blake here," he answered.
"Ah, Henry," came the familiar voice.
"General Clayton, how are you?" Henry asked.
"Oh, fine, fine. I would have called you earlier, but we've just gone through a busy spell over here. How are you getting on with packing, organising, and such things?"
Henry thanked his lucky stars that he'd opened the letter when he did. "All organised from this end, General."
"Good, good. Now, the new commander of the unit will arrive tomorrow at the latest. I should like to be at the camp to see you off, and since the war is now quieter here at HQ I thought I'd stay for the night and be there when the Colonel arrives tomorrow."
More work, Henry thought. "Great idea, General. I'll have the VIP tent set up for you."
"Good. I shall see you later."
"Okay sir. Bye now." Henry put the receiver down and sighed. He had so much to do. Pack his quarters, organise the patient and duty rosters, say goodbye to everyone, phone about every place in Korea, and now the General was coming. When would it all end?
He decided that then was as good a time to start as any. "Ra."
"The VIP tent is being set up," Radar called from his office.
He's good, Henry thought slyly to himself.
"Have you sorted out the patients?"
"Yes, Henry."
"And made sure everything was out of my office?"
"Yeah, Henry."
"What about my tent?"
"YES, Henry."
"What if I forgot something?"
"Then we'll mail it to you."
"What about."
"For crying out loud, Henry!" Hawkeye let out his exasperation. "You have an hour before you go. Try and at least enjoy it!"
"Yeah, you're right. I will do."
"By the way, the camp are congregated in the Mess tent at the moment, conveniently waiting for you to say goodbye to them."
"Even BJ, who has a bump on his head the size of a golf ball."
"I should really apologise to him before I go," Henry chuckled.
In the Mess tent, Henry stood up at the platform. He was facing his second family for the last time. This was goodbye. For once, he told himself, don't mess up.
"I'll keep it brief. I've got so much to say but if I said it all, we'd be here for the rest of the war. All I can say is this: Thank you. Everyone in this room has been like a second family to me. Everyone gets everyone else through the rough times that we've been in, and you know I had so many of them that I lost count. But, I made it through because of you guys. I couldn't have ended up with a better group of folks as you and I am eternally grateful. Thank you, I will miss you all a lot."
Henry's speech, although slightly babbled, brought tears to eyes and a standing ovation from his staff.
"For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny!" The camp sang as Henry managed to laugh and cry at the same time.
As the camp dispersed, Henry caught Radar. "In my office please, Radar," he commanded.
Radar did as he was told and walked silently behind Henry. He was unsure of what he was about to face, and did not really want to think about it. They walked into the room and Henry closed the door.
"All right, Radar," Henry began seriously, and then softened. "I wanted to thank you personally. Thanks for everything. The list is far too long to name everything that you've done." Radar looked up as Henry continued. "I'll write when I get back, I promise. Just because I want to get back home and forget about the war doesn't mean I want to forget about the people in it."
Radar smiled, for probably the first time that day. "Thank you, sir." He saluted.
Hawkeye poked his head in the door. "Henry, the General showed up."
Wonderful, Henry thought to himself with sarcasm.
Outside, the entire 4077th had showed up to say goodbye to their leader. General Clayton walked over to Henry as he exited his office.
"Henry," the General greeted, shaking his hand instead of saluting.
"General, made it just about in time," Henry said as he saw his jeep trundle towards the camp in the distance.
"No need for army formalities today, Doctor Blake," Clayton chuckled. Henry knew it would take a while to get used to hearing that again. "The war definitely will not be the same without you, Henry."
"Thank you, sir." Henry took a moment to say goodbye to those closest to him in the camp.
"Father," he began, addressing the good chaplain. "Thank you, and the good Lord, for everything, for every time you have helped me."
"Bless you, my son," Father Mulcahy replied, doing the honours.
"Klinger," Henry began, taking a moment to grasp his outfit. "Hey, you didn't need to dress up for me!" He remembered the day when Klinger vowed never to wear dresses again. He guessed that he didn't mean on special occasions.
"You like it?" Klinger asked, posing in a powder blue, off-the-shoulders dress with white gloves, white feather boa, glittering tiara, white purse and sparkling heels. "I think it brings out my eyes." He paused. "Thanks, sir. Thanks for putting up with me. I know that other people wouldn't have been as good as you were to me."
"No problem, Klinger. I've got you to remember back to and laugh about. Goodbye Klinger."
Henry spoke to BJ next. "I've not known you for all that long, but you are someone I won't be forgetting easily, especially if you end up like the other two Swamp Rats. And I'm sorry for the bump on your head."
BJ smiled. "No problem. Best practical joke played on me in years. Thanks Henry, goodbye, and have a safe journey."
Henry faced Margaret next. "I know we've had our differences, Margaret, but over the last couple of months we've gotten on a lot better. My one regret is that we didn't start that sooner. I will miss you a lot."
Margaret saluted one last time. "Thank you, Henry, and I share that regret. Sorry for all those headaches I gave you." Henry embraced her in a slightly fatherly way.
Moving on, Henry began, "Trapper. I thought I'd been through a lot. I missed the birth of my son, I almost had an affair with a girl, Lorraine and I have been through more rough patches than a sandpaper factory, but it ain't nothing compared to what you've been through. You went through hell and back, and you're still here. You've got my eternal admiration for that."
"Thanks Henry. I got lucky. I ended up in a place with the greatest people I've ever met. Thanks for being one of them." They too hugged.
"What can I say, Hawk? You're the life and soul of the party, you're one of the most dedicated surgeons I've have the privilege to work with, you're one of the greatest people I've ever met, and you could probably single- handedly drink my booze cupboard dry. I think that about sums it up?"
"Henry, you just described yourself," Hawkeye laughed. "I'll add a bit: Thanks for everything and more." Hawkeye finished by hugging Henry.
Radar was the last to bid Henry farewell. "Okay, Radar. I'll miss you the most. Be strong, don't let the others push you around, and don't ever stop being who you are."
"Thank you, Henry," Radar whispered. He could not help but shed a tear. He saluted and Henry hugged him.
The commander made sure of one thing before he left. He turned to Hawkeye and said, "Look after him, okay?"
"I will," Hawkeye replied.
After one last salute to the camp, Henry climbed into the now-parked jeep and waved once more as the jeep rolled away into the distance, taking Henry to the land of dreams in the Korean War. Home.
As Henry shared the news, Hawkeye and Trapper were left dumbstruck for a moment. Hawkeye found his voice first. "Henry, that's fantastic!"
"It's terrific," Trapper added. "Congratulations! We need to give you the biggest send-off in history!"
"You can't," Henry sighed. "I guess this is a lesson to all the people who don't open their mail on time. I leave today."
Hawkeye and Trapper could only stare. It was all so sudden, so final, with so much to be done.
"You've got a lot to do," Hawkeye finally informed him.
"We'll help," Trapper volunteered.
"Yeah, we'll be at your disposal. What do you want us to do?"
"Right, well, um, let's see now. First, best tell."
"Here sir."
"Radar," Henry finished his sentence.
Knowing that now was not a time when they would be needed, Hawkeye and Trapper exited quietly.
"Take a seat, Radar," Henry said. He was not looking forward to telling Radar of his latest news.
Nothing got past Radar. "What's up, sir?"
"Radar, I'm going home," Henry smiled slightly. "I got my discharge."
Radar looked up. "That's great, sir," he said gleefully. "When do you leave?"
This would be the hardest part. "Today, Radar. I leave today." On seeing the young man's face drop, he added, "I'm sorry, Radar. I."
"Nothing to be sorry about, sir," Radar interrupted in a brisk, serious voice. "I'll begin organising things straight away." He left the room, almost running.
Henry sighed. He didn't blame Radar for running out. Henry had been like a father to him, and in return he saw Radar as a son. After losing his own father suddenly once, Radar was about to lose a second father again, suddenly.
He sighed again. Henry's greatest desire was to go home, to leave the war and get out of the nut farm that was Korea, but it had its price. It meant leaving behind the people who had made it tolerable, the people who he looked on at as a second family.
Realising that he had so much to do in so little time, he got up to start packing his things.
An hour later, Henry had the belongings in his office boxed and outside waiting to be picked up. He was about to make a start on his tent when the phone rang.
"M*A*S*H 4077th, Colonel Blake here," he answered.
"Ah, Henry," came the familiar voice.
"General Clayton, how are you?" Henry asked.
"Oh, fine, fine. I would have called you earlier, but we've just gone through a busy spell over here. How are you getting on with packing, organising, and such things?"
Henry thanked his lucky stars that he'd opened the letter when he did. "All organised from this end, General."
"Good, good. Now, the new commander of the unit will arrive tomorrow at the latest. I should like to be at the camp to see you off, and since the war is now quieter here at HQ I thought I'd stay for the night and be there when the Colonel arrives tomorrow."
More work, Henry thought. "Great idea, General. I'll have the VIP tent set up for you."
"Good. I shall see you later."
"Okay sir. Bye now." Henry put the receiver down and sighed. He had so much to do. Pack his quarters, organise the patient and duty rosters, say goodbye to everyone, phone about every place in Korea, and now the General was coming. When would it all end?
He decided that then was as good a time to start as any. "Ra."
"The VIP tent is being set up," Radar called from his office.
He's good, Henry thought slyly to himself.
"Have you sorted out the patients?"
"Yes, Henry."
"And made sure everything was out of my office?"
"Yeah, Henry."
"What about my tent?"
"YES, Henry."
"What if I forgot something?"
"Then we'll mail it to you."
"What about."
"For crying out loud, Henry!" Hawkeye let out his exasperation. "You have an hour before you go. Try and at least enjoy it!"
"Yeah, you're right. I will do."
"By the way, the camp are congregated in the Mess tent at the moment, conveniently waiting for you to say goodbye to them."
"Even BJ, who has a bump on his head the size of a golf ball."
"I should really apologise to him before I go," Henry chuckled.
In the Mess tent, Henry stood up at the platform. He was facing his second family for the last time. This was goodbye. For once, he told himself, don't mess up.
"I'll keep it brief. I've got so much to say but if I said it all, we'd be here for the rest of the war. All I can say is this: Thank you. Everyone in this room has been like a second family to me. Everyone gets everyone else through the rough times that we've been in, and you know I had so many of them that I lost count. But, I made it through because of you guys. I couldn't have ended up with a better group of folks as you and I am eternally grateful. Thank you, I will miss you all a lot."
Henry's speech, although slightly babbled, brought tears to eyes and a standing ovation from his staff.
"For he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, for he's a jolly good fellow, which nobody can deny!" The camp sang as Henry managed to laugh and cry at the same time.
As the camp dispersed, Henry caught Radar. "In my office please, Radar," he commanded.
Radar did as he was told and walked silently behind Henry. He was unsure of what he was about to face, and did not really want to think about it. They walked into the room and Henry closed the door.
"All right, Radar," Henry began seriously, and then softened. "I wanted to thank you personally. Thanks for everything. The list is far too long to name everything that you've done." Radar looked up as Henry continued. "I'll write when I get back, I promise. Just because I want to get back home and forget about the war doesn't mean I want to forget about the people in it."
Radar smiled, for probably the first time that day. "Thank you, sir." He saluted.
Hawkeye poked his head in the door. "Henry, the General showed up."
Wonderful, Henry thought to himself with sarcasm.
Outside, the entire 4077th had showed up to say goodbye to their leader. General Clayton walked over to Henry as he exited his office.
"Henry," the General greeted, shaking his hand instead of saluting.
"General, made it just about in time," Henry said as he saw his jeep trundle towards the camp in the distance.
"No need for army formalities today, Doctor Blake," Clayton chuckled. Henry knew it would take a while to get used to hearing that again. "The war definitely will not be the same without you, Henry."
"Thank you, sir." Henry took a moment to say goodbye to those closest to him in the camp.
"Father," he began, addressing the good chaplain. "Thank you, and the good Lord, for everything, for every time you have helped me."
"Bless you, my son," Father Mulcahy replied, doing the honours.
"Klinger," Henry began, taking a moment to grasp his outfit. "Hey, you didn't need to dress up for me!" He remembered the day when Klinger vowed never to wear dresses again. He guessed that he didn't mean on special occasions.
"You like it?" Klinger asked, posing in a powder blue, off-the-shoulders dress with white gloves, white feather boa, glittering tiara, white purse and sparkling heels. "I think it brings out my eyes." He paused. "Thanks, sir. Thanks for putting up with me. I know that other people wouldn't have been as good as you were to me."
"No problem, Klinger. I've got you to remember back to and laugh about. Goodbye Klinger."
Henry spoke to BJ next. "I've not known you for all that long, but you are someone I won't be forgetting easily, especially if you end up like the other two Swamp Rats. And I'm sorry for the bump on your head."
BJ smiled. "No problem. Best practical joke played on me in years. Thanks Henry, goodbye, and have a safe journey."
Henry faced Margaret next. "I know we've had our differences, Margaret, but over the last couple of months we've gotten on a lot better. My one regret is that we didn't start that sooner. I will miss you a lot."
Margaret saluted one last time. "Thank you, Henry, and I share that regret. Sorry for all those headaches I gave you." Henry embraced her in a slightly fatherly way.
Moving on, Henry began, "Trapper. I thought I'd been through a lot. I missed the birth of my son, I almost had an affair with a girl, Lorraine and I have been through more rough patches than a sandpaper factory, but it ain't nothing compared to what you've been through. You went through hell and back, and you're still here. You've got my eternal admiration for that."
"Thanks Henry. I got lucky. I ended up in a place with the greatest people I've ever met. Thanks for being one of them." They too hugged.
"What can I say, Hawk? You're the life and soul of the party, you're one of the most dedicated surgeons I've have the privilege to work with, you're one of the greatest people I've ever met, and you could probably single- handedly drink my booze cupboard dry. I think that about sums it up?"
"Henry, you just described yourself," Hawkeye laughed. "I'll add a bit: Thanks for everything and more." Hawkeye finished by hugging Henry.
Radar was the last to bid Henry farewell. "Okay, Radar. I'll miss you the most. Be strong, don't let the others push you around, and don't ever stop being who you are."
"Thank you, Henry," Radar whispered. He could not help but shed a tear. He saluted and Henry hugged him.
The commander made sure of one thing before he left. He turned to Hawkeye and said, "Look after him, okay?"
"I will," Hawkeye replied.
After one last salute to the camp, Henry climbed into the now-parked jeep and waved once more as the jeep rolled away into the distance, taking Henry to the land of dreams in the Korean War. Home.