Personal Narrative: United States Army

Since the day I was born, I have always lived my life as a military child. My father was in the Navy during the 1990’s, and my mother has been in the Air Force since 1997. Life as a military child has always been my normal format of life, so I am unaware of what it is like to live differently. From roughly 2002 to 2007, I lived in Fairford Air Force Base in England, where my childhood began, though I do not recall a substantial amount of it. However, I do recall that I attended school, albeit a primarily religious one, for the first time, and that experience was unlike any experiences I had with the American educational system from 2007 onward. I also remember being highly adventurous; I often ran out of my house, away from my local Child Development Center, and my school, though I

I went pre-med before getting deployed and as an intern I've seen a lot of horrible things. But when it's your friend... Someone you serve with... It stays with you forever.

I was in the Marine Corps serving under Third battalion Eleventh marines Mike Battery in Twenty-Nine Palms California from 2009-2013. What our unit did was put rounds down range, oorah. We were an artillery battery, think modern day cannons. As far as twenty-nine palms all you have to imagine is sand in a five hundred square foot mile area. My job as Ammo chief was to insure the safe handling and transportation of hundred pound high explosive bombs. On one partially long training exercise I was instructed to take my marines and four ‘7-ton’ trucks and go to the rear to load up with more ammo. No problem, I’ve done this before but on this occasion when I was going to return the battery would have moved positions. So they gave me the grid number

Little did I know that was going to be the second to last time I would see her. If I knew about my upcoming death and I had a choice, I would have stayed, but when you are deployed to the US army you don't have choice. You can resist orders and be killed or you can follow orders and have a slight chance of surviving. I chose the later because I wanted to come home to my beautiful wife.

I originally wanted to join the military to defend and protect our country, but realized that it wasn't going to bring the satisfaction I desired. I wanted to fight and defend closer to home, the one that involves Traffic incidents, Drug and DUI enforcement. One Friday afternoon, after getting out of High School, there was a video game tournament being held at a Movie Gallery just a few miles away from where I live. I attended the event and met a cool young man who was 18 years old at the time. I believe I was 16. I talked with him about games and the future tournaments that would be great for the community. It was the beginning of a wonderful new friendship. However, the next day at around 3:00p.m., my dad came into my room and told me he

To start off I was 8 years old and I always liked the military. In a way, I looked up to anyone who was in it. But there again, I always knew that the marines were different from all the other armed forces. I think I got this impression from watching movies, videos, and seeing one in real life. The Marines carried themselves differently, and I realized that they had a certain discipline that set them apart. I couldn't exactly pinpoint it, but luckily my grandma's dad was a drill sergeant for the Marine Corps, so she knew a great deal about it and she would tell me stories about how her father passed this discipline down to her, and this model is what carried onto who she is her today. Unfortunately, my great grandfather passed away before I

It all started on a dare, I was told to join the armed forces. So I did, but everything changed that day when I saw a petty officer sprinting down the street. Only to stop not 2 feet in front of me and say “urgent telegram for Sergeant Rose!!” Which is when I knew that something was different because I never get anything important from the air force, I had only become sergeant a month ago. The briefing was hard because we knew most wouldn’t come back. Then it was shipping day. The steps toward the plane weren’t any better most of the men were married and yet most of them knew, knew that more likely than not they weren’t making it back. As for the ones that would be able to sleep on their own beds after this, well it would be worse. They would have to live with the fact that they lost their brothers in arms, but hey I'm getting ahead of myself, gotta focus on surviving.

The job I want after high school is the Army. My MOS in the army would be Infantry 11x. Infantry is the backbone of the army, and there is always a demand for infantrymen. Infantrymen duties are to defend the country against any threat by land, and capture, destroy and repel enemy ground forces during combat. For this job in the Army it only requires a high school diploma, GED, or another high school equivalency degree.

1. My experiences in combat and in garrison has provided me with an insightful perspective on our nation’s most precious resource, the United State Army Soldier. We are obligated to tell these Soldiers’ stories along with the respective commands they serve in with our local partner communities and national public. I see the VTIP as an excellent opportunity to continue serving the United States Army in a different capacity.

I joined the Marine Corps looking for a challenge. I wanted to open doors for a new career and longed to have a positive impact on the world around me. Looking back five years later, I realize I found all that I originally sought, but I’ve also found something profoundly satisfying and meaningful that I never knew I was missing.

Overall, my extracurricular the most important thing I did while I was in high school, I joined this nation's Military when I was 17 years old. My experience in the Military has changed my life for the better, not for the benefits, but in the pride I feel to be able to be apart of something bigger than myself. Not only do I feel pride when I wear the uniform, but when my 8 year old brother tells me that he wants to be in the Army to make me proud. In a sense the Military made me put my head on straight and start to care about the important things. As I became more responsible and realized what the Military was trying to teach me and enrolled myself in an EMT Certification Course so that I have a chance to improve myself and others by serving

“Grew up in a little town about twenty miles from here. Place called Spencer.” Jason replied. “Ever been there?”

Chris and I wake up in the morning in a tangle of sheets, the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafting into our small bedroom. Chris slides out of bed with his grey and black boxer briefs hugging his rear. I hop out of bed and give Duke a quick snuggle and pat him on his oversized head, he slowly rolls over onto his side looking up at me patiently waiting for his belly rub.

Recently, I saw a man sitting on a park bench at a local recreation area that I frequent often. He was elderly, maybe in his 60’s or so. I can only guess at his age because of certain visual signs that he portrayed such as his slouching form, shaky hands and tan wrinkles that were formed around his eyes and mouth. I’d never seen him in the area prior to this occasion, so I was curious as to why he was there, all alone.

Throughout life I have always been reminded that freedom is not free, and my few years in the service have confirmed that. Military service is of extreme importance because without the men and women that protect and serve, the United States of America would not be what it is today. Throughout history, America gained it’s freedom and independence with use of military power. With today’s threat of enemies whom are willing and capable to harm, a powerful and robust military is a necessity in deterring this kind of terrorism. The military paved the chance to change my life and better my future for my potential family down the road. My career in the military helped envision my true ambitions and matured me in a special way. My commitment in the