The Decision
At the age of twenty-one, I thought I had it all figured out. I was working three jobs, trying to go to school full time, and partied full time. I was living the life of a young twenty-one-a-year-old girl who would wake up on her parents’ couch from the night before and continued the same routine again the next day. Honestly, it was so exhausting to live that lifestyle, especially with no positive outcomes coming from it. Just hangovers and heartbreaks. I woke up one day drained from the night before. As I was getting ready for lunch, a thought came to mind; something needs to change. I didn’t want to end up being a server at an Apple Bee when I’m thirty or never experiencing anything in life but my hometown.
For months while working as a front desk associate at a local gym, two Army recruiters would ask me every day to meet with them. Ha, me in the Army as a soldier, ya right! What the heck would I do in the Army? I wouldn’t last, I was too much of an irresponsible wild party girl that had to have my hair done before leaving the house. Me? Go to war? It was never something I had considered. Then, I thought, what were my options for change? I was already attending college, which I was barely passing, I could be a full-time nanny and travel, or I could join some military branch. I went to the recruiter’s office that day!
The first choice was the Air Force. Living in a city where we have an airbase nearby, it seemed like the best option. I would see all the air force people out, and they always said it was the smartest branch to join. I walked into that recruiter’s office with confidence and determination to join. The recruiter, who was so lovely, took the time to sit down and speak to me about joining. Ten minutes into the conversation, he says to me that, unfortunately, I will not be a good fit for the Air Force. WHY? Because I have a wrist tattoo, and they do not accept anyone with visible tattoos. He asked if I had any more? Well, I did. I was bummed about not being about to get into the “smartest” branch of the military. So, I went next door.
At the time, I had two cousins who were in the Marines. Both my cousins went to Iraq after 9/11 and experienced unspeakable things. One of my best friends was also in the Marines. I said I could do this as well. I walked into that office not so confident or as excited as the last. To my surprise, there were no recruiters on that day. So, I went home and waited ‘till the next day.I didn’t tell anyone I was thinking of joining the service because they would laugh at me and tell me how I wouldn’t make it through any basic training. At home was my older sister, which whom we have always had a bumpy relationship. My younger brother, who was at the time young and into not-so-great things. My parents put my beautiful sister on a pedestal and then me, the middle child, black sheep who always screwed up. I didn’t talk about it. I did read more about the Marines that day and asked others how they liked it. Everyone made it seem harsh, especially for women. I slept on what I would do the next day.
The next day got ready for work and was excited about what I would do after work. While I was working, those two Army recruiters came to work out. Again, they asked me if I had thought about joining, and for the first time, I said yes, but I was interested in the Marines. They talked to me a little more about why I was making that decision, and all I said was because I wanted to be a badass. Who doesn’t want to be a badass? They laughed and said if I changed my mind, they would be in their office later that day. I thought about what they had said to me regarding why I was making my decision. I was deciding to join any branch for a change in my life.
That day after work, I went straight to the Marine recruiter’s office, it was closed. So, I went next door to see the recruiters that always asked me to come to speak with them. I went into the Army recruiter’s office. The two recruiters were not there; they were at a high school that afternoon. There was though one recruiter in there that I had never met before. He was grumpy and hated life. I spoke to him for thirty minutes about wanting to join the military, and he said it was the best decision of his life to serving the country. He asked me what job I wanted and did not know many options or anything about the military. I said I wanted to be in the front line; I wanted to be infantry. He chuckled at me and said No, they don’t let women in the infantry, but the closest thing for women would be military police. He told me not to make any decision until I completed my ASVAB test. Not knowing what the ASVAB test was I did not prepare. Instead, I went out drinking the night before and took the test hungover. I didn't do fantastic considering the decisions I made. I got lucky and was able to choose MilitaryPolice as my military occupational specialty, which Army personnel call MOS.
It was such an exciting time for me to decide to join the Army and serve my country. The next decision was to see when I could leave for basic training; I wanted to go as soon as possible. At this point, I still hadn’t discussed with anyone my decision, but it was coming time to tell them soon since I was leaving and all. The soonest date to depart landed on my mother's birthday. I decided that was probably not a great idea, so I pushed it back to the following week. The process was faster than I had anticipated but was so excited for my future. Now the next step was to tell my family.
Telling my family was going to be interesting because I did not think that they would believe that I made this big decision. Party girl me, who loves to be dolled up and have a good time. The reactions were different all around, but they all had that same reaction at first, no way. My mother was proud and happy for me, as well as my sister and brother. On the other hand, my dad did not want me to go. He would tell me every day to stay, that he would take care of me and I would make it in the world without having to do this. He would prefer to have me stay home drunk and sleep on his couch for as long as I wanted to. When he told me that, I knew I made the right decision to change my lifestyle and my future. Where my life was heading was probably not a proper place, and I was comfortable with the decision I made.
After a wild going away party, where I got drunk and kicked the cake into the living room, it was time for me to hit the road. My parents dropped me off at a hotel the night before I flew out to basic training. I was accompanied there by a few other people who were also leaving, we went to have dinner together and the next day the airport. I was heading to Fort Leonard, Missouri. That is when I started the best and worst chapters of my life. Little did I know that those included love, heartbreak, marriage, abuse, divorce, rape, death, war, depression, child, and oh so much more.
For months while working as a front desk associate at a local gym, two Army recruiters would ask me every day to meet with them. Ha, me in the Army as a soldier, ya right! What the heck would I do in the Army? I wouldn’t last, I was too much of an irresponsible wild party girl that had to have my hair done before leaving the house. Me? Go to war? It was never something I had considered. Then, I thought, what were my options for change? I was already attending college, which I was barely passing, I could be a full-time nanny and travel, or I could join some military branch. I went to the recruiter’s office that day!
The first choice was the Air Force. Living in a city where we have an airbase nearby, it seemed like the best option. I would see all the air force people out, and they always said it was the smartest branch to join. I walked into that recruiter’s office with confidence and determination to join. The recruiter, who was so lovely, took the time to sit down and speak to me about joining. Ten minutes into the conversation, he says to me that, unfortunately, I will not be a good fit for the Air Force. WHY? Because I have a wrist tattoo, and they do not accept anyone with visible tattoos. He asked if I had any more? Well, I did. I was bummed about not being about to get into the “smartest” branch of the military. So, I went next door.
At the time, I had two cousins who were in the Marines. Both my cousins went to Iraq after 9/11 and experienced unspeakable things. One of my best friends was also in the Marines. I said I could do this as well. I walked into that office not so confident or as excited as the last. To my surprise, there were no recruiters on that day. So, I went home and waited ‘till the next day.I didn’t tell anyone I was thinking of joining the service because they would laugh at me and tell me how I wouldn’t make it through any basic training. At home was my older sister, which whom we have always had a bumpy relationship. My younger brother, who was at the time young and into not-so-great things. My parents put my beautiful sister on a pedestal and then me, the middle child, black sheep who always screwed up. I didn’t talk about it. I did read more about the Marines that day and asked others how they liked it. Everyone made it seem harsh, especially for women. I slept on what I would do the next day.
The next day got ready for work and was excited about what I would do after work. While I was working, those two Army recruiters came to work out. Again, they asked me if I had thought about joining, and for the first time, I said yes, but I was interested in the Marines. They talked to me a little more about why I was making that decision, and all I said was because I wanted to be a badass. Who doesn’t want to be a badass? They laughed and said if I changed my mind, they would be in their office later that day. I thought about what they had said to me regarding why I was making my decision. I was deciding to join any branch for a change in my life.
That day after work, I went straight to the Marine recruiter’s office, it was closed. So, I went next door to see the recruiters that always asked me to come to speak with them. I went into the Army recruiter’s office. The two recruiters were not there; they were at a high school that afternoon. There was though one recruiter in there that I had never met before. He was grumpy and hated life. I spoke to him for thirty minutes about wanting to join the military, and he said it was the best decision of his life to serving the country. He asked me what job I wanted and did not know many options or anything about the military. I said I wanted to be in the front line; I wanted to be infantry. He chuckled at me and said No, they don’t let women in the infantry, but the closest thing for women would be military police. He told me not to make any decision until I completed my ASVAB test. Not knowing what the ASVAB test was I did not prepare. Instead, I went out drinking the night before and took the test hungover. I didn't do fantastic considering the decisions I made. I got lucky and was able to choose MilitaryPolice as my military occupational specialty, which Army personnel call MOS.
It was such an exciting time for me to decide to join the Army and serve my country. The next decision was to see when I could leave for basic training; I wanted to go as soon as possible. At this point, I still hadn’t discussed with anyone my decision, but it was coming time to tell them soon since I was leaving and all. The soonest date to depart landed on my mother's birthday. I decided that was probably not a great idea, so I pushed it back to the following week. The process was faster than I had anticipated but was so excited for my future. Now the next step was to tell my family.
Telling my family was going to be interesting because I did not think that they would believe that I made this big decision. Party girl me, who loves to be dolled up and have a good time. The reactions were different all around, but they all had that same reaction at first, no way. My mother was proud and happy for me, as well as my sister and brother. On the other hand, my dad did not want me to go. He would tell me every day to stay, that he would take care of me and I would make it in the world without having to do this. He would prefer to have me stay home drunk and sleep on his couch for as long as I wanted to. When he told me that, I knew I made the right decision to change my lifestyle and my future. Where my life was heading was probably not a proper place, and I was comfortable with the decision I made.
After a wild going away party, where I got drunk and kicked the cake into the living room, it was time for me to hit the road. My parents dropped me off at a hotel the night before I flew out to basic training. I was accompanied there by a few other people who were also leaving, we went to have dinner together and the next day the airport. I was heading to Fort Leonard, Missouri. That is when I started the best and worst chapters of my life. Little did I know that those included love, heartbreak, marriage, abuse, divorce, rape, death, war, depression, child, and oh so much more.