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Wow.

It’s been 7 months. 217 days. 5208 hours. 312480 SECONDS.  That’s the length of time I have been away from everything I know: friends, family, work (as shitty as it was; fuck you Pizza Hut), and the civilian world.  It was an experience (if that even begins to describe it).  It was something that as soon as I arrived at 0100 on a bus at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I began to question.  Was this really what I was supposed to do?  Joining the Army is a huge decision.  It’s signing your typical American rights away and trading them in for a much more strict, disciplined set of rules you must abide by daily.  We were told on zero day, that “Less than 1% of the American population will serve in any branch of the armed forces”.  Was I really the kind of person that fell into that 1%?  

To me, I was not the typical build for a soldier.  I had always had issues listening to authorities, staying out of trouble, being disciplined, and more so, knowing when to NOT be a smart ass.  Day zero, I questioned my decision and as I came to realize, so did everyone else in the dark, quiet barracks at Fort Jackson.

To sit down and write a complete recount of the 217 days I spent in training is something I plan to tackle, just not now.   All I want to get across to, well, myself I guess, is that is was worth it.  All the inner questioning, all of the grueling physical tasks and even more grueling mental stresses presented to me all were overcome.  I learned a lot about myself throughout the entire experience but the biggest thing I learned was to never doubt myself.  Doubt is the easiest way to fail before you try.

As cheesy as it sounds, the Army values hold a lot of meaning to me, but the one that best relates to the past 7 months is “Personal Courage”

“Face and overcome fear, danger, or adversity (physical or moral)”

I am going to do my best to no longer neglect my Tumblr, as small as it is.  So for now, I’m back itty bitty Tumblr…I’m back.