Personal Narrative: I Am A United States Navy Sailor

I have been serving in the Army for 18 years. I did four years in the Marines. I am currently working in Fort Drum as a Sergeant Major. My job is Infantry.

I have been accepted to AFS-USA's international exchange program to Norway. I will be spending my sophomore year living with a host family and going to school at a local upper secondary school. I am awaiting the information regarding where I will be located in Norway, as well as my paperwork for a Norwegian visa. As long as the final stages of my application go through, I will depart this August and return the following July.

With every organization comes a degree of change. The Marine Corps is no different. With a rapidly changing world, we must strive to sustain the transformation and remain true to our ethos. Across the Marine Corps the culture of each unit is different, with sustaining the transformation as our tool we can make each unit better for new generations of Marines. Marine Raider Training Center sustains the transformation by holding quarterly promotion panels to ensure deserving promotions; however it fails to sustain the transformation by not welcoming new Marines to the unit appropriately, I will build a Welcome Aboard package to sustain the transformation for my Marines.

It was the year of 2023 I just got out of San diego Marine corps Infantry training. I work with the L.A.V squad team. I shot the light machine gun on the top of are vehicle Some what known as a rifleman. We are the first to go into a war zone to check it out before we all go into fight.

July 13th 2015, I began a journey that changed entirety of myself for the better. I woke up that morning in the hotel room I was assigned; I’d been waiting and training for an entire year in anticipation of that day. I was finally on my way to Great Lakes, Illinois to attend Naval Bootcamp under contract to attend “Basic Underwater Demolition/Seal Class 317” afterwards. I was was only 19 but it felt as if I was coming straight out of high school. I’d never lived anywhere else other than with my mother in North Georgia, so leaving the state and starting a new life was a little odd. I remember July 12th when I got in the recruiting recruiting station’s van to take me to the hotel. I was trying so hard to be strong, yet I couldn't stop myself from tearing up once my mother was out of view. It was sad to leave her behind, but I was sure I had my life figured out

I’ll never forget the day, stepping off that bus, and lining up on those yellow footprints. I had arrived to Marine Corps boot camp in January 2007 at the age of 17. Feelings of nervousness, excitement and even a little fear, were all setting in simultaneously. The round hatted Drill Instructors informed me and the new enlistees that we no longer had names, and were now called “Recruit”. At the time, I was still wet behind the ears and did not know much about life, yet I thought I did. Joining the United States Marine Corps was the beginning of my transformation from a boy to a man.

Growing up in small town Georgia, there is not much to do in the blazing summer heat. My days this past summer (before I-Day of course) consisted of listening to Zac Brown Band and watching my beloved Atlanta Braves. Listening to music and watching baseball are sources of stress relief for me; the two media outlets take my mind off of hardships in my life. Coming to the Naval Academy was a big change for me, and I felt a little blindsided by the endless rules I was required to follow. I had no idea that freshman here would not be able to rate media. My life at home and at the Naval Academy are completely different. At home, I can always fall back upon the excitement of an upcoming doubleheader, but at the Naval Academy, I must live in a high

Life at the Academy is rough. There are days the midshipmen will love it and other days when they hate it. Eventually, I understand that the loves out weigh the hates, however, in the beginning, especially during plebe year, it may feel overwhelming to many. Many Naval Academy graduates say the “Naval Academy is a tough place to be, but a great place to be from.” Concerning that, there were some regulations that I only discovered with further observation. Mealtime is an example of those ever so important Naval Academy rituals, demonstrating the unique training program of our military. At all formal meals, plebes only use the front three or four inches of their chairs, sitting at attention, with the exception of the chairs in the academic buildings and plebe/Fourth Class dorm-rooms. Also when walking down corridors they can

Four Native Arabic Speakers 09L volunteered for the mission, showing interest to be part of the last unit to leave Iraq after 8 years of operations in the country. At the time, I was freshly promoted Sergeant. Hence, I became the NCO of the native Arabic speakers 09L. The responsibilities were overwhelming. Nevertheless, the superiors never abandoned me to fail as a Noncommissioned Officer. The Noncommissioned Officer Corps is a non-ending cycle of learning, about the welfare and safety of the

I wasn’t a healthy child. Some of my earliest memories are of my frequent visits to the doctor for a plethora of reasons, from ear infections to asthma to chickenpox, it seems like I dealt with it all as a little boy. I remember some of my early health problems vividly, but I also remember connecting the doctor with feeling better. At this young age I was also confronted with the threat of the death of my father. Mom picked us up early from school one day, and I could see a look of fear on her face as she sped uncharacteristically fast away. “Mom, where are we going?”, I asked. “Your dad is in the hospital, he’s very sick. We are going to see him.”, she replied, choking on her words speaking to her two young children. “WHAT’S WRONG!?”, my

My military service reshaped who I am. My training stripped away any sense of entitlement and I learned more about myself in four months than I’d ever known before. It not only gave me discipline and taught me to perform under pressure, but everything I did wasn’t just for me anymore. I was working hard for the marines next to me in my platoon. The time came when each of us hit a breaking point physically or mentally.

“WOOOSH!” The water gun sprayed the glistening lake water like the mist setting on a hose.

We as people make decisions every day that will affect the rest of our lives. Most people when deciding whether to do something they picture it to be amazing, fun, and exciting or boing and horrible. These thoughts may be true once you experience it but it can also be the opposite of what you were thinking. My decision was to join the military as the marine. I will be doing a comparison/contract on my perceptions on going to Bootcamp, ITB (infantry training battalion), and The Fleet.

My responsibility as a Navy Nurse Corps leader is profound in consideration of the evolving health care landscape, dynamic operational environment, and fluid demands of the military mission. The significance and magnitude of our roles as lead¬ers within Navy Medicine are depen-dent on our adaptability, agility, and commitment to life-long learning.

Several months, I have been tossing the idea about joining the Navy. My family was aware about Navy was possibility option. Recently, I have contacted a Navy Recruiter, and I have not told my family about me talking to a recruiter. My family is important aspect of my life, so the conversation needs to happen sooner than later. When I bring up the Navy conversation, my intention would ease my family in acceptance of their daughter leaving the state. Joining the Navy would impact me and my family, and the impact on my family would tribute to the difficult conversation. In following joining the Navy would impact me and my family, and the impact on my family would tribute to the difficult conversation. Underlie feeling have huge impact on person’s attributions and judgement. A difficult conversation affects the identity of a person. Therefore, intention by the conversation was important.