35 years, 7 months, 14 Days

35 years, 7 months, 14 days of life.

I served in the Air Force for ten years. What compelled me to accept a contract with the Seawolves is unexplainable. Except that my destiny was calling. I had this thirst for the athletic lifestyle and freedom. It is through the risks we take that we discover ourselves. I discovered a monster and a king.

Now 2022 dawns upon the horizon.

Will the real Eric Duechle please stand up?

Momma Elisa & baby Eric

4 Years a Civilian

I returned from Iraq a changed man. Four years ago this month, feelings of numbness and anger in my heart…being a witness to the inner workings of war, and the horrors of collateral damage seared to my retina. Eighty-one days after returning home, I exited the Air Force, on December 29, 2017.

Even though my exit was hasty, it was the beginning, of the adventure of a lifetime. Launching Major League Rugby, the first pro rugby league in America and serving as a professional rugby player for my city, Seattle. A whirlwind transition. Me and my new teammates assembled for training on January 22, 2018. With three months to prepare for kickoff.

How did we end up on that field? Waiting for pre-teen soccer girls to end their practice and clear off each night, so the Seattle Seawolves could train. It was a comedy we humbly tolerated with a chuckle.

How I ended up as the Strike Chief of Operations for my Army Special Forces unit is also a mystery. My rank and military experience qualified me for the position. Though, it’s one of those jobs that you really never know you can do until you are there. For example, one of my deployment classmates committed suicide the first week we arrived in country. RIP.

Our unit was excellent at its mission. Killing bad guys from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), known terrorists of America and the Western World. My job was to coordinate, record and report all strikes on ISIS targets in Syria. We were the eye in the sky, unseen and far away. In a small way, you feel like God (and the devil). Though I doubt either of them felt nauseous. Our battlefield was in the middle of an urban city. And we witnessed collateral damage amidst the daily carnage.    

My writings here are the unclassified version of my tale. Many men and women return home and carry the same burden of war. I hope this can inspire you to look within and share at least one unclassified story that weighs you down. Your country, your family and most importantly you, deserve the whole you to return. I ended up developing PTSD from the experience. What helped me was seeking out a sports psychologist. He helped me break free from the past and future that lives in our head. Being present is the key.

I hope to speak more on what I learned from therapy. For now I will leave you with this.

Sincerely,

Major (ret) Eric M. Duechle

Writer Jorge Luis Borges on transforming every experience into a resource:

"A writer — and, I believe, generally all persons — must think that whatever happens to him or her is a resource. All things have been given to us for a purpose, and an artist must feel this more intensely. All that happens to us, including our humiliations, our misfortunes, our embarrassments, all is given to us as raw material, as clay, so that we may shape our art."

Taking cover in an Afghan bunker during enemy fire. Fall 2010.

Hello Universe

Sitting in a café downtown, pondering life, creating my art. This is pure joy. A peak human experience. I am grateful to be writing my first blog for ericduechle.com in this moment.

I feel I have found my purpose in life. Reach Enlightenment. Help the World.

The first step in that journey is to breathe.

Breathe and return to joy. Down that rabbit hole we encounter what I like to call Peak Human Experience: an entering of the flow state of joy and authenticity in everyday life. A fun detour.

I want you to know that I really care about you. I believe in you. I believe that together we can save the world. Clean the waters. Discover joy and live a life of authenticity.

Until next Sunday.

Eric Duechle