Narrative Essay

I raised my right army and swore, “I, state name, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will obey the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the uniform code of military justice. So help me God.” My body tensed as they took my fingerprints to finalize my enlistment with the U.S Army. I was to ship in a couple days that would change my life forever. Little did I know it was going to be a very rigorous six months full of challenges I’d never thought I would have to face. It was going to be a summer full of sweat, tears, determination and personal courage. My first initial transition from civilian to soldier was walking up on a bus after traveling several thousand miles to basic training at Fort Lenardwood. A drill sergeant appeared from the door of the bus and darted his way on to the vehicle. He barked to the new recruits, “No body freaking look at me! Put your heads down!” I quickly glanced at my watch, as I put my head down, and noticed it was almost midnight. A few curious recruits were courageous enough to sneak a glance up quickly at what sounded about six drill sergeants that stood on the bus all of a sudden. “ You think this is a freaking game civilians? None of you are going to make it here! None of you have what it takes to last a week!” “Was he right,” I thought. “What have I gotten myself into,” I asked myself. My thoughts came to an abrupt halt when a female drill sergeant ordered us off the bus and into formation outside. “Hurry the hell up, privates! We’re about to see the weak from the super weak!” Cold drops of rain splashed on my checks and nose as I ran off the buss and made my way to formation, which at a quick glance looked well over 200 recruits. I noticed our formation was specifically placed over a huge muddy puddle, which stirred my thoughts out of control again. “What are they going to make us do.” I wondered, “When can I go to sleep?” Unaware that I was fogged down in my thoughts, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my ear. A drill sergeant ordered me to low-crawl in the muddy water along with a few other specifically selected soldiers. This intense “smoke session” lasted what felt like hours but was probably only a few minutes. We quickly got our act together and we were able to rejoin the rest of the recruits in formation, where we endured more low crawls, push ups, yelling in our face, running, major fatigue and shock. We were finally allowed to sleep in our bunks, where I soon learned was extremely uncomfortable. Weeks seem to go by as if they were several months the first four weeks, as it consisted of no-brainer information about first aid and becoming a soldier. Fast forward to week 5, the gas chamber. We have been practicing to properly put on and take off our gas mask for endless hours. Now it was time to put the mask to the test in the gas chamber. I entered the close-walled chamber, which quickly filled my nose and lungs of the burning aroma. The burning sensation quickly crawled all over my skin. To make things worse, which drill sergeants typically thrive to do, we were told to do jumping jacks and push-ups. Breathing became limited and difficult with the mask. Several minutes later, we were ordered to, “remove our mask and recite our last name and last four digits of your social and exit the chamber. Anyone that messes up what they are suppose to say, we will start over,” we were told. I removed my mask and said “Sellers 9718.” I exited the gas chamber as fast as I could. Cold wet snot dripped from all of our noses and tears rushed from our faces. That was my picture perfect moment at basic training for many reasons. Later that Night, I laid awake thinking on my bunk. “Maybe the way to get through the remainder of my training is to accept that it is a huge mind game. I shouldn’t let my mind bring me down to the state of unwillingness to give my best effort in my training.” This new found attitude got me through qualifying with grenades, shooting my M-4 for the first time, repelling down a tower and leading my first mission on a helicopter. I had become a different person – a soldier. I learned that being confident, courageous and having a positive mind will serve me well in both my civilian and soldier life. After basic training, I got the courage to accept my first mission with my unit at Fort Hood. I always wanted to finish my bachelor’s degree but was nervous about the possibility of being the older student. Maybe I wasn’t ready to jump back in to civilian life so fast. I was extremely happy I was honored with an ROTC scholarship at Newberry College, where I currently continue my studies. I am ready for any obstacle that may face me in the future and I will choose to tackle them each courageously.