Graduation and commissioning for USMA Class of 2001
Amazingly, today marks the twelfth anniversary of my commissioning as an officer in the U.S. Army. Twelve years wearing Army boots {well, sixteen if you count the boots at West Point before my commissioning}. Frankly, I’m amazed. I’m amazed because of where I’ve been and what I’ve done, because of the people I’ve met and served with, and, well, because I’m still here.
For your enjoyment, here are a couple throwback pictures to 2001 ~ our graduation parade and me {surprise} being silly.
I’ll be honest, while I got teased back at school about being a “lifer” because I enjoyed our training and wearing Army boots as much as I did, I didn’t think it would be a career. I had a very different plan, but my life was rocked by a rough deployment made even rougher by divorce, and that changed everything. After I filed for divorce, I had a decision to make. Try to stay with the original plan, getting out of the Army and figuring out what to do with my life, or come up with a new plan?
A wonderful mentor of mine convinced me to stick it out at least through company command. If I didn’t like that, he said, then I could at least take that experience with me and look for jobs as a former commander instead of a former lieutenant. I liked the logic of his argument, so I stuck around. And I loved command. And I loved the strategic planning and training jobs I had after it. I’ve loved my time here at West Point, and I love being an analyst. Those jobs turned my life around and showed me how to really be a contributing part of something greater than myself.
I love the look I’ve gotten into the strategic side of the Army, and while I was a good commander, I’m an even better planner, and my analytic background lets me look at the things we’re doing right and tweak them to make them better, and to look at some of the really boneheaded not so great things we do and fix them. What’s the use in finding problems if you’re not going to find a way to fix them? I’m at the point in my career where I can do that, and I love it.
I’m very much looking forward to my next job and our move to Hawaii, but in the meantime, my husband and I are embarking on another very exciting adventure – we’re heading to Europe for a bit! While we’re gone, I have plenty of posts pre-positioned for your enjoyment and I may pop up on the net every now and then to say hi, and I’ve also got a couple of guests to introduce to you, so do keep coming by. Your visits really mean a lot to me.
This is a picture from about the same era, the last time I was in Paris, noshing on a crepe in front of the Tour Eiffel – and I can’t wait to repeat the experience! That’s where I’m headed, by way of a few other places! {cue the squeeee!}
Currently…
In…Newark International, waiting on the flight that’s going to take us to Barcelona on the first leg of our little European adventure! Our bags are packed, the cats are at the kennel, the house-sitter is in place, and we’re ready to go! If you want to follow our adventures, I’ll be posting sporadically and doing recaps when I get back, but I’ll probably be all over Instagram and Four-Square, so come on over and make friends!
Reading…guidebooks and phrasebooks and practicing my Spanish, Catalan, and French. I should have started practicing a while ago, because I’m not up to par. Thank God for Google translate.
Writing…itinerary notes and brainstorming ideas with the husband about things to do when we’re in Barcelona. Paris is planned out probably to the minute because we’re there for such a short time, but right now we have very little nailed down for Spain!
Listening…to the international terminal abuzz with excited people getting ready to travel, and getting annoyed at TSA. That, at least, seems to transcend cultures.
Thinking…a lot has changed in these twelve years, and so much for the better. Will I ever get to a point where I don’t look back on my old days and cringe? I made so many mistakes in my younger years. Time makes it easier, but I still want to go back in time and slap myself.
Smelling…coffee as per norm. And new clothes and shoes for the trip. And our nice shiny new suitcases. We splurged and got whole sets of the Jeep hardsiders from Wal-Mart and we absolutely love them!!
Wishing…that I could afford to upgrade us to first class or business class, or at least something with taller seats and more legroom! I can squash into just about anything so bring on the cargo space for me, but my husband is eight inches taller than me and he’s never comfortable.
Hoping…that I sleep through all the bumpy parts of the flight. Flying over the North Atlantic is never smooth.
Wearing…comfy clothes. It’s a yoga pants, t-shirt, sweater, and Sketchers ballet flats kind of flight. My fashion definitely takes a hit when I take the red-eye. But believe me, I’ve got plenty of pretty things packed to wear while I’m out and about in Europe, and I’m excited for that!
Loving…my husband and his willingness to let me drag him all over the world. He’s very much a homebody at heart and while I can tell he’s excited for our adventures, I’m going to have to give him some serious time at the house after this crazy summer! After all this, we’re both going to need some down time!
Wanting…to be there already! I love travel, but I never graduated from the “are we there yet?” mindset of childhood.
Needing…nothing at all. My husband’s here, my sister’s meeting us in Spain, and I’m going on an adventure! Life is good.
Feeling…excited! Could you tell?
Clicking…my heels together, wishing I could get some Oz magic to speed up the travel process.
What’s on your mind, currently?
