{"id":50211,"date":"2023-09-18T19:16:10","date_gmt":"2023-09-18T19:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2023\/09\/18\/soldier-reenlists-while-standing-on-division-sergeant-majors-desk\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T04:15:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T04:15:31","slug":"soldier-reenlists-while-standing-on-division-sergeant-majors-desk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/news\/your-army\/2023\/09\/18\/soldier-reenlists-while-standing-on-division-sergeant-majors-desk\/","title":{"rendered":"Soldier reenlists while standing on division sergeant major\u2019s desk"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cNo trooper, no special forces operative wants to sit behind a desk,\u201d British soldier turned TV personality Ant Middleton once mused. But a brave, inspired few will stand on one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staff Sgt. Justin Smith commemorated his indefinite reenlistment with the Army earlier this month by reciting the oath atop the glass-paneled desk of his division sergeant major at Fort Bliss, Texas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Staff Sgt. Justin Smith, left, during his Sept. 5, 2023 reenlistment ceremony. (Photo courtesy of Staff Sgt. Justin Smith.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wanted to do something special and fun,\u201d Smith told Army Times. \u201cI figured reenlisting on the senior DIV NCOs desk would be really memorable. You can\u2019t do much to top that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soldiers have long used reenlistment ceremonies<\/a> to buck<\/a> the branch\u2019s formalities \u2014 within reason. In the military, these moments present rare opportunities to bend boundaries and loosen up in a job that often demands unflinching discipline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Senior officials aren\u2019t always fond of lighthearted twists on the ritual. A master sergeant in the Air National Guard caught flak from the service\u2019s top officer in 2018 when she reenlisted<\/a> wearing a dinosaur puppet on her right hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately for Smith, no such drama followed his reenlistment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He insists his command sergeant major was \u201cvery receptive and good-natured\u201d about his choice of venue, and the unconventional use of office decor. Even so, a well-timed photo of the event seems to show the command sergeant major eyeing a bayonet hanging from the wall as Smith repeated his oath \u2014 a moment that some observers on the popular Army subreddit<\/a> quickly zeroed in on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI thought the comments were hilarious, especially the ones trying to narrate what was going on in CSM Light\u2019s head and how they noticed he seemed to be staring at his bayonet with malicious intent,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n\n\n\t