Graf 11A

At 32 years old, I feel that I have had to make quite a few major decisions in my life; most of which have had a substantial impact on me in one way or another.  Most decisions that I have made have come easily though.  When I met my wife, I did not have to think about whether not she was “the one.”  There was no question in my mind about if I wanted a child or not.  Most decisions seem to come naturally to me, requiring little thought or research.  I believe that God sends us in the direction that He wants us to go; we just need to listen.

                The biggest decision that I had to make was when I was getting ready to graduate high school.  Did I go to college right away and possibly party away a ton of money?  Did I even know what I wanted to be at such a young age?  If so, what school would fit my interests?  Do I even want to go to college, or join the military? If I joined the military, what branch?  All these questions seemed to torment me for months.  All these questions deserved research.

                In the end, I decided to join the United States Marine Corps.  I researched the branches by speaking to what seemed like a million different recruiters.  While all the branches seemed to offer the same tangible things such as education, jobs and benefits; The Marines seemed different.  It was the intangibles that sold me.  The Marine recruiter carried himself differently than the others; he had a certain swagger that made him stand out from the others.  Through Sergeant Rios I learned that I could join the military, grow up and then go to school. 

                I served nine years in the Corps; growing and learning a lot about the world an myself.  I learned that I could grow, serve my country and go to school when I got out.  That’s what I am doing now.  Through research, I have also decided that I want to continue my education in the medical field and plan on applying to the nursing program here at EMCC this fall.