 Loaded question, but how are you? I'm doing great, the experience has been very humbling. Yesterday at the White House was remarkable. Just everything, the way it's set up, presented. Being able to look out in the crowd and try my best to lock eyes with and look at every person that has had an impact in my life, that was really special. It's the first time that from every aspect of my life where somebody's been there, all sitting in the same room and to see that was, felt very blessed. Take me back to that phone call you were talking about. And they said, be prepared to get a phone call from somebody. The phone call is, I was in December and here in the room real for a little bit that this was potential. Are you going to happen? And kind of the guy, I don't believe until I see it. So when they gave me the phone call, the White House staff calls you and they say, hey, can you receive a call from the president on this day at this time? And my initial reaction right off the bat was, does anyone actually say no to this? Because it's, let me check my schedule. I think one guy maybe did, but my schedule is definitely open. So when the president calls you, it was very friendly right off the back. Caught you by the first name, tries to break the awkwardness with you and tells you how proud he is of you and the guys you serve with and what this means and that he read over the award and that he's officially approving it. And he looks forward to shaking your hand. What I thought was most intriguing, probably the most special thing about the phone call was he mentioned how the ceremony itself was embodied why our nation exists. And that's why it's his favorite ceremony to be a part of. And that really rang home. That means a lot, especially 15 plus years of continued war first since 9-11, they really rang home with me, so. Who was the first person in your family that you let know was about to happen? I called my mom, you know, and she, she was out to dinner with my sister and I called her and let her know that this was official. The first thing out of her mouth was, you know, just like the president remarked the other day, yesterday was, do you think you, do you think I could come to the ceremony and so she got a little ribbing from the president yesterday and that was, that was, that was a good levity, levity point in the day. This has got to be so surreal right now. It is surreal. It's, you don't even notice it because you can't even see it when you, when you look down. So the most surreal part about it is, is being surrounded with your, with your family and friends. You know, we, you don't do this alone. Everything we do is with, with a team. And if it wasn't for that team, I wouldn't be sitting here today. You know, the people I work with are the most remarkable men on the face of the planet, toughest men I've ever seen and, and their, their willingness to keep going on a university, to never quit, never fail, to always accomplish whatever the task is, is humbling to say the least. And I'm proud that I've been able to know, you know, men like that and to serve with men like that. Cause I think once you leave this community, the likelihood of, of having that opportunity will, will be slim to none. What does your normal look like now? My normal looks like what it always has. I'm going to continue serving my country, being a Navy and being a SEAL and whatever, wherever that takes me, it's, I'm going to do the task at hand. From the first time you raised your hand coming out of that MEP station or entering for the first time, if you could go back and talk to that guy, knowing what you know now, experiencing what you've experienced, what would you say? Don't let me change a thing. You know, it's, you do, uh, may not know it at the time. It's certain events happen in your life and they, and they ultimately happen for a certain reason and I'm, I wouldn't change anything. I, you know, life, life has been very good to me and it's been very good to my family and I'm very appreciative of all the opportunities that I've had. When one thinks of that phrase, Medal of Honor recipients, what did you think of before this was even an option for you? What did you think of? What did that person look like? What was that person's character like? That person was an embodiment of the countless sacrifices that other people themselves included, you know, have made. They did an extraordinary act and they just happen to be in the right place, the right time to, to be recognized for that. I'm not exaggerating at all that when I say that the men I work with have done so many heroic things over the, the course of my career that I can't even, I can't count them on my hands. They saved my life countless times and a lot of what we do goes unrecognized. This becomes a representation of everybody's efforts and sacrifices. And how do you carry that now? I carry it with, with all those thoughts of mine to understand that people fought and died for this country, you know, true heroes like Nick Check. To hear that mission, he's the one that sacrificed everything to bring back a fellow American. And that's a true embodiment of a brotherhood. Is that at the end of the day? If we have to, we'll lay down our lives for you. Take me back to your childhood. What were your heroes like then? My heroes are what I read in, you know, military books, the people that, that lived in secrecy that did hard, hard missions that, and my dad kind of embodied that. He was a, he was a very tough man. He was in the very end of World War II. He never talked about anything he did. He did many other things in his life and he, he really aren't ever talked about that. I was talking to a really good friend of mine the other day and he had an amazing, you know, quote about how our community thinks in a different perspective. And he really brings true. He said, you know, we, we don't have time to look back. You know, we're always, we're always looking forward. And that, and that's exactly right. Our, our community is always looking forward and you never rest on your laurels. You know, you recognize certain actions that have happened in the past, but those are in the past. And now what's, what's the next thing? What's, what's our next mom? We got to conquer. This seems like this was not the goal to obtain this yet. Here you are. And now you've been bestowed with that title hero. How are you going to cope with that? What do you want to do with that? How do you, how do you deal with folks that are going to be looking at you now and saying, hey, you're now that hero? I definitely would not define myself as a hero. That's definitely not a term you should bestow upon yourself. A group of people that I work with felt what I did was deserving of this award. The heroes I think of is, I can't say this enough, is the people I work with. They've done so many things that will never be recognized, deserving of this award 10 times over. Just for some reason or another just did not happen. So I can only hope that being a representative of our community that my fellow brothers would be proud of what I'm saying and how I'm handling myself. Do you feel right now that that is happening? I mean, how is the reaction? I have a lot of good reactions. Like fellow brothers, they're going to give you a Jocelyn here and there and take some comments in the newspapers and Pocahontia, but that's to be expected. And that's how you know you're loved a little bit because if they weren't doing that, you have a problem. Do you now feel you've established a standard that is going to be so hard to pass? I think I've carried a standard that was taught to me when I first came into this community. And that's the uniqueness of going to SEAL Training is that from the very beginning it removes all your individualistic qualities. You know, we have the saying it's team gear, your gear, then yourself. And that's the process in which you look at things and you do things. And as long as you keep those in focus, you can never go wrong. Do you kind of feel that that training, then, has equipped you now for what's going to be an avalanche of adulation, admiration, singled out? I mean, does that help you at least prepare for that? Absolutely. You know, everything we take, everything, everything that actually we have is in effect a mission. It's a task that you have to accomplish, anything you do in your day. You know, so as long as you break it down and define it into those boxes, you just, you go at it the same way you go at everything else in life. How are you going to take this now and apply it for that next generation or for those brand new sailors coming in that say, I want to join this community or I want to do this or I want to end up like that guy? The only thing you can say to that is if that's what you truly believe in your heart, go after your dreams. Don't worry about what else anyone else says. Follow that, work hard, never quit. And you can be part of that brotherhood. What were your thoughts going into that particular operation that you look back at now that tell you that's what carried you through this? For my entire career, every deployment, every single mission I've ever been on, I've always wore a St. Michael the Archangel patch. I got it off of a seal the first time I went to Iraq. And I've always said that prayer because it's a warrior's prayer going into every operation we ever did. And I'll take that patch and then I would put it on our team hut when we weren't going out and then I'll take it off and put it on my body armor when we would leave for that mission. So that was a sustaining grace which gave you a sense of, gave me a sense of calm. The training though is after that it's the instinctual training. We rehearsed this stuff so much that in those moments of split second life and death decisions, you just react. And I know for a fact that if there was anybody else in my position at that time and in one of my teammates that they would have done the exact same thing. Did you feel now reading the citation that playing it back in your mind like that wasn't a medal of honor moment? I mean, that's got to be hard to process. Some things are hard to process. To me, I was just doing my job. Once again, that's why we don't award ourselves things. You know, that's why there's other people that are there to do that, to have the outside look and outside perspective. You've mentioned you've got your family kind of in tow on this whirlwind and the serility that kind of, that carries with it. Has any of your old friends or folks from the old hometown start rising up and saying, wait a minute. I mean, have you heard from all the folks back home yet? I had a lot of friends from back home and throughout my past that I've actually came here. So it's a very interesting mix of bringing old friends with new friends and listening to old stories with new stories. So I'm sure there will be a lot more heckling in my life with the outtake of these new stories. And that's a good thing. There was an interesting shot during the ceremony that the camera kind of panned over and there were the other recipients standing there. And I don't know how to articulate or explain it, but you guys had the same look on your face. How is that brotherhood now? How is that, have you had a chance to kind of sit down with some of those folks and go, wow. I have had a chance to sit down with some of them and they're truly remarkable men. You know, what they did for their nation and defense of our freedoms is heroic. And if people have the opportunity to meet them, I suggest they sit down and to listen to their story because they're inspiring. And they have a lot of good insight into life. You're now one of them. How does that feel? I'm not sure I've processed that yet. Right now, I'm just the same old ad continuing to do my job and wanting to get back with my brothers. Is there any part of this story now? Keep in mind that there will be sailors looking at this. Just sailors of every walk of life. What do you want them to take away from this? This community is truly unique. And even sitting here and trying to describe it is coming nowhere close to doing it justice. And that if there's something that they want to do, that they should go after their dreams. No matter if it's this or anything in life is they just need to work hard. That is a core essence of our community. It's hard work, unrelenting hard work. The sacrifices we make, the sacrifices, you know, my wife, my daughter makes. Everyone that's behind the scenes, it doesn't get any of the credit. This really is a community of brothers and the families that go behind it and support that is what keeps us doing that job because without them we couldn't. So they have to understand that that that support network is strong as long as they do that and develop that sense of teamwork. That's what it takes to accomplish things in life. Well, I want to thank you so much for taking this time and sitting with us and just chatting. And again, congratulations. It's not a big enough word. Thank you. All right. Thank you very much. Thanks.