With a 1945 birthdate, it became apparent when I was in law school, or before, that I would likely have to perform military service. This was not something that I had given a great deal of thought to beforehand as military service had not loomed large in my family since my forebears came to the country from Russia and Russian Poland in the late nineteenth century. It is fascinating (to me, at least) to see how things unfolded.

It is a complicated story. On the one hand, my great-grandfather, Aaron Greenberg served in the Tsar's army. Oral tradition among my cousins has it that he was an Army barber. On other sides of the family tree, my paternal great-grandfather was said to have served in the brief Russo-Turkish War of 1878–79, while my maternal grandfather elected in the 1890s not to answer the Tsar's call. One of the few pieces of family memorabilia I possess is his draft notice. He fled, made it to New York, learned English in a hurry, and within a few years of immigrating graduated high enough in his class at the former Brooklyn College of Pharmacy to win a microscope as a prize. It's in my closet. Nicholas II also figures in my stepfamily; one of my stepsisters’ proudest possessions is a photo of their dashing young grandfather in his Russian Army white tunic.

My father was born in 1909 and served briefly in the New York National Guard, including marching in Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt's inaugural parade. Regrettably, he never gave me any other details, and I imagine he was too old to be drafted in World War II. My maternal uncle, who trained as a dentist, served briefly in the Army in the 1940s, but again, details are few. He never discussed it. I never had the opportunity to meet my wife's father, but he was an Army doctor.

In my own generation, military service became a reality thanks to the draft. This was simply a fact of life for young men of my generation. Nevertheless, it was a new experience when my brother, also a lawyer, was commissioned in the Coast Guard, going on to serve for six years, that is, beyond his obligated service.