The Best of Si Robertson: Life Lessons from the Lovable Duck Dynasty Uncle & Author of Si-cology 1 (Duck Commander Family, Happy happy happy, Duck Dynasty, ... Family, Si Robertson, Phil Robertson) (2 page)

When Si is in the warehouse, though, times are anything but dull. He’s known for his stories, especially those of his experiences during the Vietnam War, and he often initiates games to be played during their working hours. The other guys follow suit – and that’s where the mayhem begins.

“Ouch! My tooth hurts… It’s because you’re too sweet.” – Si Robertson

There are things that make Si Robertson a unique individual. His behaviors make him an indispensable part of the show and the clan.

He’s always blamed for things happening around the family, and he’s always seen roaming around Phil’s residence and the Duck Commander warehouse.

If you think you know Si enough, then you may have noticed four things he always carries: his gallon of tea, his tea glass, a gun, and his Bible.

Tea Drinker

You’ve probably noticed that Uncle Si is a huge tea drinker. Take note, though, that he drinks it straight and pure; no sugar or cream added

How does he make his tea?

Si narrated how he concocts his tea: he puts three bags of tea in a pot of water, turns the heat on the water, lets it boil, puts a saucer over the tea, and just let it seep. After the tea has seeped, he pours it in a gallon jug, and it’s ready for drinking.

There’s also a sweet history behind his tea glass. It was said that when he was serving overseas during the Vietnam War, his mother gave him a blue Tupperware iced tea cup. Until now, he’s still using the same mug and he goes everywhere with it.  He continues to use that particular mug all the time.

Si’s Tupperware cup has become so famous, it already has its own Twitter and Facebook pages. A lot of duplicates have been made, but of course, the original never leaves Si’s sight.

There was one time when a guy handed Si a blank check – he wanted to buy Si’s iced tea cup. Relentless as the buyer may be, Si was equally persistent. He told the guy the cup really wasn’t for sale, and he could just use the money to buy his own set, since A&E TV wouldn’t want him to part ways with his cup (Si even said he’d take it to the grave if he could).

Because of the fame brought by the cups, the Tupperware CEO in Orlando, Florida sent Si a box that contains a big boiling pot, stainless steel saucepan together with a lid, plus a good set of steak knives. The box’s bottom also had twelve Tupperware cups. The cups were making a comeback, all thanks to Si’s mom, Merritt Robertson.

Bible Reader

Si is proud of his faith. He carries a Bible with him at all times, and when he signs things for people, he includes two Bible verses.

According to Si, he puts down the verses John 3:16 and 17. Of course, people are more familiar with John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son”. Verse 17, on the other hand, talks about Jesus being the only one that had a right to condemn someone.

Si also mentioned his opinions about his faith: he said there are no denominations – it’s either you’re a Christian, or you’re not.

How Si deals with his wife’s issue with fertility is another significant incident that shows how strong Si’s faith is. His wife had gone to all the specialists she knows, and she was told over and over that she won’t be able to bear children. She initially didn’t want to marry Si because she thought he wants to have kids in the future. But what did Si say?

“Hey, don’t worry about that. The doctors don’t have the final word. I believe in a higher power.”

Si’s faith wasn’t in vain. Si and his wife now have two miracle babies – they have a son and a daughter who have four grandsons each.

“America, everybody is in too big of a rush. Lay back, take a sip of tea, mow a little grass. Then if you get tired, you take a nap.” – Si Robertson

There are experiences in Si’s life that I’d like to share with you. Not only because they would make you laugh your guts out, but because there are lessons that you can learn from it along the way.

When in doubt, C is the answer

When Si was in college, he wasn’t really what you call the perfect student. He went for three quarters – two of them were spent partying. After all, if you remember, that’s what he told his mother, right?

Since he wasn’t really bent on going to school, Si rarely went to class. Charles Hollier, Miss Kay’s cousin was his partner-in-crime. Charles, aka Tinker Bell, was also flunking school. Si’s days were spent at the mess hall or spent fishing with his brothers Tommy and Phil. If he’s not doing those two things, he is probably drinking beer with Tinker Bell.

Eventually his brothers got on his case about not attending class. The truth is, he’s already on probation with the school dean and he can’t commit more mistakes, or else he risks getting thrown out of school. However, he still didn’t exert much effort in studying.

One day, Tinker Bell went to him and asked if he knows anyone who has their class’ lecture notes. Apparently he too can’t flunk because his father would “kill him”. Si then found a number of girls who gave him copies of their class’ notes and they proceeded to study for 74 hours straight.

On the day of their final exams, Si did well in his classes. He breezed through his exams and was alert. He was still wired from the caffeine and the sugar intake he had from all the soda pop he drank. When the final exam came, it had 100 questions – he answered about 15 and before he knew it, he fell asleep… his professor woke him up telling him he only has ten minutes remaining to finish the exam.

It was a multiple choice type of exam, which for Si, worked in his favor. He went through his answer sheet and breezed through the answers, answering all C. All he needed was 5 minutes and he was done.

The next day, Nancy, Tommy’s wife, was ranting and raving at Si. Since she worked for the registrar’s office, she was able to check his grades. Si initially thought he had flunked, but to his surprise –

For six months, he partied. He never went to class. But he almost made the dean’s list; he would have made an A average if not for three points.

Remember: when in doubt, C is the correct answer.

Vietnam War

Si may have proven his wit, but he didn’t feel like continuing his studies. For him, a college education doesn’t equal intelligence and success.

It wasn’t easy to break the news to his parents. After all, they were very enthusiastic about him going to college. Every sibling was in school and he was expected to have the same opportunity. His parents had made some sacrifices to keep him in college – for sure they’d be disappointed.

He broke the news one morning during Si’s Christmas break. They were disappointed, yes, just as he had expected, but they didn’t give a Si a hard time when they saw he was really into it.

That’s when the military came in.

The 1967 Military Selective Service Act states that if you were a single man, at least 18 years of age, and you were not in college, then prepare yourself to go to Vietnam. Why, every description that fits Si. Two weeks after leaving Louisiana Tech, the draft papers arrived. A few weeks later, he underwent a physical exam at the army recruitment office.

Basic training started in 1968 and lasted eight weeks in the hot summer. Before he was assigned to a unit, he was tasked to take the ACB (Army Classification Battery). The ACB was meant to grade soldiers according to their field expertise. For example, if a soldier did well in electronics repair, then he’d most likely be assigned as a technician for anti-air defense. Si took the exam and – would you believe – was included in the top five percent of everyone who entered the army that time. He scored extremely high on various fields – engineering and architecture, mechanical and clerical maintenance, as well as surveillance and communications.

At first, Si was sent to sniper school and he stayed there for about a week. Afterwards, he was assigned to be an officer in the field of materials supply and accounting. He was also the commander’s right hand man – he assisted in maintenance, guard duty, pay, mobilization planning and transporting soldiers.

Finally, Si graduated from Advanced Military Training. He and his fellow soldiers were hoping not to be sent to Vietnam, but nevertheless they were sent to the hotspot.

On 1968, the 19
^th
of October, Si landed on South Vietnam. Contrary to what he had expected, they weren’t greeted by missiles and rockets – the landing was eerily quiet. He was pretty overwhelmed by the atmosphere. Now, if there’s one thing Si remembered about his arrival in Vietnam was not the guns, bombs or the fight itself – it was the smell of fish. He was so sick of the smell of fish; he didn’t want to be near them when he went home.

Drinking Spree

Now, when Si was in Vietnam, he developed problems with drinking. It was the only time that he drank heavily. According to Si, Vietnam is a place where you just don’t care. It’s a foreign land; people hate you there and will kill you given any chance.

Because of alcohol, Si almost killed two people in cold blood. One, a Vietnamese boy who threw rocks at him and taunted him, making him think he was shot, and two, a Vietnamese woman who startled him when she offered him a large boa constrictor coiled around her neck. Si almost shot them both.

Another instance was when he, with a buddy, almost signed up to volunteer as a door gunner in Vietnam. What’s so bad about that you say? A door gunner’s life in Vietnam lasts an average of three days. Good thing they both got into their senses prior to signing up.

Si drank a lot of whiskey and beer in Vietnam. He decided to completely quit alcohol once he went back home. He realized what alcohol did to him and realized he had to stop for good.

The Love of His Life

Things happen because there’s a reason behind it. This is something that Si believes in – this is what he thought of when he met his to-be wife, Christine.

After leaving Vietnam, Si was assigned to Fort Devens located in Shirley, Massachusetts. He found the place different from what he was used to – different accents, different climate, and different people. It was really a change of scenery, but he knows that there’s a purpose why he was put there.

It turns out that Christine Raney is the reason for his stay.

Si met Christine Raney in November 1969. He was hitchhiking to a nightclub, and Christine was inside a car with a couple of friends, one whom Si had already known.

Christine really didn’t like Si that much from the start. She thinks Si was too arrogant, and that he was so full of himself. But soon, Si got to know Christine and found out she was already previously married but got separated because she couldn’t bear a child. For a few years Christine and her previous husband tried, but they never had a baby.

Doctors told her she wouldn’t conceive because she had an underlying medical condition. And since her previous husband wanted a child of his own, he left Christine.

Understandably, Christine was too hesitant about dating. She was always set up on dates, but she had a list of demands for a next boyfriend.

What did Christine require: the guy’s height must be within 6’ to 6’3”. He has to have a slender frame. The guy has to have either blue or green eyes. His smile should be beautiful, with dimples. The guy also has to be smart, with a sense of humor, and has to have a warm heart.

Si told Christine he’s got just the guy for her. Christine was doubtful that Si had found someone with all of those qualities, but secretly Si believes that he fits all the criteria – eight for eight, according to Si.

Their common friend set them up for a blind date. Well, actually only Christine was the ‘blind’ one, since Si was completely aware of what he was going into.

Christine wasn’t really happy initially when she saw her date would be S, but Si activated his charm and Christine laughed like she never laughed in her life. He added his dancing skills, and Christine was sold – they dated regularly soon thereafter.

After a few years of dating, Si knew she was the one. He wanted to propose. He was going back to Louisiana and he wanted to go home with Christine.

He called home to share the news to them. He was somehow scared because Christine was previously married – and Si’s family didn’t approve of divorces. When he called and told his mom the good news, he was surprised to hear that she was going to be accepted by the family, whether she was divorced or not.

However, when he actually proposed to Christine, he got a ‘no’ for an answer. This happened again and again and again, after numerous proposals. Si insisted, saying that he wants marry her, and if they can’t have children, then they’ll adopt. However, God has a funny way of making things happen for those who believe…

Finally, on the 7
^th
of April, 1941, Christine and Si got married at the courthouse. She finally agreed after Si pestered her for almost a full day (Talk about persistence. And love.). The judge asked Si if he was again ready for another commitment after getting out of the commitment from the Army – he said yes, and he knew it would be a commitment that’s going to last for the rest of his life.

They exchanged vows and finally became husband and wife.

“Work hard. Nap hard.” – Si Robertson

Silas Robertson is a bunch of a lot of things. He’s fun, he’s quirky, he’s spontaneous… but you can also learn a lot of valuable life lessons from him.

“Can I have directions …to your heart?”

Included in Si’s quotable quotes are a bunch of pick-up lines he uttered. It never fails to make someone laugh their hearts out, or even just bring out a small chuckle.

The following are some of his hilarious one-liners that he uses in his book and on the Duck Dynasty show:

“Darlin’, you’re on fire – like donut grease.”

“Can I have directions… to your heart?”

“Somebody, better call God, cause heaven is missin’ an angel!”

Learn to take a break.