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I am seventeen years old and originally from Puerto Rico, but I moved to Texas at a young age. I have two loving parents who always push me to do my best, an older sister who is going to graduate from nursing school, and a girlfriend who gives me nothing but support in all the things I do. I couldn’t be more proud. You may be wondering why I came here.
It’s because I want to join the United States Marines. I want to help this world from its corruption and what it has been through. I believe that fighting on the frontlines for this country can make a difference. I want to help people in ways others can’t help and protect them.
When I came here, I was already accustomed to the sleep schedule because I always woke up at 4:30 in the morning and held plank for 1-4 minutes. Here we wake up at 4:30, leave the bay/sleeping quarters, and go to physical training. My platoon cannot shut their mouths half the time, so we get smoked. This means we get to do workouts for people’s mistakes, even if they are not ours.
Next, we have chow. At this time of day, we are not allowed to talk to other people, and we have to eat our food in 5-30 minutes, depending on if we’re late or not. As you can guess, Charlie Platoon is almost always late.
We also have these things called time hacks. If we don’t do what we need to in the time given, we get smoked even more.
Even though it is hard, I still end up staying. The day I give up is the day I let the people who doubted me, the people who resented me, and even the devil himself take control and win the fight. Sure, it has its ups and downs; we all cry. There is no hiding it. We all break down and need a mental break, but I always get back up.
I will finish with this. I am setting and creating my path in life the way God leads me. My father said once that one day I would understand the meaning of being an adult. Although I am not there yet, I hope to see that day. The challenge is a small price to pay for the bigger picture.
