"It is the soldier, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who gives us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag."
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
"smile through the sadness that screams from your spirit.."
"We live in a world that tells us how we should act, think, love; and, driven by an overwhelming need to be accepted, we all too often lose that which is most precious to each of us... our souls. We follow others' leads, we conform, we do the "right thing" and smile through the sadness that screams from our spirit, as we try to please those around us. Like Cinderella's evil stepsisters, we try to turn that special shoe that was made just for us, into one size fits all. And while many of us manage to squeeze our foot into someone else's shoe, the pain eventually causes us to limp through life, never taking the opportunity to realize how special each of us is. God intended for each of us to be individuals, to follow our own paths, to run joyfully through life, experiencing the wonder of the world while wearing our own shoes... or better yet, without any shoes at all." - The Brat Chronicles
Top 10 Reasons You know you're a Military Brat:
1.Are amazed at people who have never left their hometown.
2.Are able to imitate others speech patterns easily
3.Are asked is it hard always moving around when you don't know anything else.
4.Answer the question "where are you from" with "I'm kinda from all over the place"
5.Can identify ranks and duty station by the stickers on the car's bumper.
6.Actually like the clothes at the PX and don't mind that 100 other people are wearing the same thing.
7.Are asked "where did you learn to speak English so well"
8.At 22 you are trying to find someone in the military to marry so you can get a new ID card.
.9.Are amazed at people who have lived somewhere more than three years.
10.Are brought to tears by military music.
Top 10 Reasons You know you're a Military Brat:
1.Are amazed at people who have never left their hometown.
2.Are able to imitate others speech patterns easily
3.Are asked is it hard always moving around when you don't know anything else.
4.Answer the question "where are you from" with "I'm kinda from all over the place"
5.Can identify ranks and duty station by the stickers on the car's bumper.
6.Actually like the clothes at the PX and don't mind that 100 other people are wearing the same thing.
7.Are asked "where did you learn to speak English so well"
8.At 22 you are trying to find someone in the military to marry so you can get a new ID card.
.9.Are amazed at people who have lived somewhere more than three years.
10.Are brought to tears by military music.
We were not blown about by the wind. We simply made our own.
What Is A Military Brat?
A Military Brat is someone, who, as a child through young adulthood, grows up in a family where one or both parents are "career" military. This unique life is typically marked with moving from base to base (or post to post), and often leads to life experiences in many places in the U.S. and often exposure to different cultures in different countries around the world.
Some Military Brats think that once they give up their I.D. card and after they are grown up and away from the life they knew, they are no longer a Military Brat.
The reality is that growing up on bases and being subject to the many rules and the culture of the military is actually life changing. Most Military Brats' values and first experiences of other cultures formed during our early years through young adulthood, and will remain with them for the rest of their lives.
Military Brats also identify strongly with the the branches of our U.S. military forces: Air Force, Army, Marines, Coast Guard, and Navy. While each branch of service is different, the experiences of Military Brats of being part of something larger than the sum of it's parts is the same.
Many Military Brats live on Military bases, and find there are many around them who are very much like them growing up. It is only after living off base or after a Military Brat "joins" the civilian world that they realize how different they are.
There can be no doubt that the discipline and patriotic values instilled upon us as children wlll last a lifetime.
About one in five Military Brats, growing up in a military family leads to service in the U.S. military, and it is estimated there are between 9 and 12 million U.S. Military Brats today.
A Military Brat is someone, who, as a child through young adulthood, grows up in a family where one or both parents are "career" military. This unique life is typically marked with moving from base to base (or post to post), and often leads to life experiences in many places in the U.S. and often exposure to different cultures in different countries around the world.
Some Military Brats think that once they give up their I.D. card and after they are grown up and away from the life they knew, they are no longer a Military Brat.
The reality is that growing up on bases and being subject to the many rules and the culture of the military is actually life changing. Most Military Brats' values and first experiences of other cultures formed during our early years through young adulthood, and will remain with them for the rest of their lives.
Military Brats also identify strongly with the the branches of our U.S. military forces: Air Force, Army, Marines, Coast Guard, and Navy. While each branch of service is different, the experiences of Military Brats of being part of something larger than the sum of it's parts is the same.
Many Military Brats live on Military bases, and find there are many around them who are very much like them growing up. It is only after living off base or after a Military Brat "joins" the civilian world that they realize how different they are.
There can be no doubt that the discipline and patriotic values instilled upon us as children wlll last a lifetime.
About one in five Military Brats, growing up in a military family leads to service in the U.S. military, and it is estimated there are between 9 and 12 million U.S. Military Brats today.
I Am a Military Brat♥
I am an Army Brat. My hometown is nowhere, my friends are everywhere, and if I haven't been someplace yesterday, I am sure to go there tomorrow. I grew up with bugle calls and artillery salutes and the knowledge that home is where the heart is and the family--with no dependence on the dwelling.
Mobility is my way of life. I have found security and happiness in motels and guest houses, in duplexes and apartments around the world. Some would wonder about my roots, yet they are as deep and strong as the mighty oak's. I sink them quickly, absorbing all an area offers and hopefully giving enrichment in return.
Like all Army dependents, I can say "Hello," "Good-bye," and count to 20 in five languages. I can tell of the shores of Maine, the marketplaces of Mexico, the Buddhas of Japan; and my knickknack shelves look like those of an import shop, for my memories span the globe.
Travel has taught me to be open. By age nine I had seen more of the world than most people do in a lifetime; I had touched many and allowed their cultures to touch me. Shaking hands with the universe, I found a brotherhood in all men.
Just as there is joy in meeting, so is there pain in parting; and although practice makes perfect, there is no way to perfect "Good-bye." Farewells are never easy. Yet, even in sorrow comes strength and an ability to face tomorrow with anticipation. And if when I leave one place I feel that half my world has been left behind, I also know that the other half is still waiting to be met.
As an Army Brat, I go out to others extending hand and heart. Friendships are formed in hours and kept for decades. I will never grow up with someone, but I will mature with many, and the help that I offer today will be returned farther down the road. Be it inevitable that paths part, there is constant hope that they will meet again.
I feel fortunate to live in a society of tradition drawing from the past to enhance the present - where silver baby cups announce life, horse-drawn caissons pronounce death and the living in between is dedicated to the service of God, man and our nation.
Love of country, respect and pride fill my being when Old Glory passes in review. As I stand to honor that flag, so also do I stand to honor all soldiers, most especially to the man whose life created mine -- my father. Because of him I have shared in the rich heritage of Army life.
Now, as Army wife and mother, I have passed on that legacy to my children. I wish for them a wealth of experiences and knowledge and love, so that their lives will be blessed as mine, and I pray that one day they will join me in boasting, "I am an Army Brat!"
"I am a Military Brat" on parchment now available in the Brat Store!
©1975, 2009 Deborah W. Giusti, all rights reserved. Used by permission.
Mobility is my way of life. I have found security and happiness in motels and guest houses, in duplexes and apartments around the world. Some would wonder about my roots, yet they are as deep and strong as the mighty oak's. I sink them quickly, absorbing all an area offers and hopefully giving enrichment in return.
Like all Army dependents, I can say "Hello," "Good-bye," and count to 20 in five languages. I can tell of the shores of Maine, the marketplaces of Mexico, the Buddhas of Japan; and my knickknack shelves look like those of an import shop, for my memories span the globe.
Travel has taught me to be open. By age nine I had seen more of the world than most people do in a lifetime; I had touched many and allowed their cultures to touch me. Shaking hands with the universe, I found a brotherhood in all men.
Just as there is joy in meeting, so is there pain in parting; and although practice makes perfect, there is no way to perfect "Good-bye." Farewells are never easy. Yet, even in sorrow comes strength and an ability to face tomorrow with anticipation. And if when I leave one place I feel that half my world has been left behind, I also know that the other half is still waiting to be met.
As an Army Brat, I go out to others extending hand and heart. Friendships are formed in hours and kept for decades. I will never grow up with someone, but I will mature with many, and the help that I offer today will be returned farther down the road. Be it inevitable that paths part, there is constant hope that they will meet again.
I feel fortunate to live in a society of tradition drawing from the past to enhance the present - where silver baby cups announce life, horse-drawn caissons pronounce death and the living in between is dedicated to the service of God, man and our nation.
Love of country, respect and pride fill my being when Old Glory passes in review. As I stand to honor that flag, so also do I stand to honor all soldiers, most especially to the man whose life created mine -- my father. Because of him I have shared in the rich heritage of Army life.
Now, as Army wife and mother, I have passed on that legacy to my children. I wish for them a wealth of experiences and knowledge and love, so that their lives will be blessed as mine, and I pray that one day they will join me in boasting, "I am an Army Brat!"
"I am a Military Brat" on parchment now available in the Brat Store!
©1975, 2009 Deborah W. Giusti, all rights reserved. Used by permission.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)