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Sending My Son To Navy Boot Camp
Author : Arty Cull
Submitted : 2011-12-22 08:30:34 Word Count : 870 Popularity: 0
Tags: Navy boot camp
Last Tuesday my oldest son arrived at Navy boot camp in Great Lakes, IL. Christopher has had a desire to enter the Navy since he was in his early teens. At age 14 he joined the Sea Cadets unit in Pittsburgh, PA, where we lived at the time, to get a head start on what he hoped would be his career. Christopher's interest at the time was aviation. More than anything else he hoped he would someday get the possiblity to fly for the Navy. Midway through his Jr . year, our family relocated due to my work and he switched from Sea Cadets into the NJROTC unit at his school. This proved to be very good for him, as he was selected to receive a full ROTC scholarship to Prairie View A&M.
Once Christopher got to help college, he had difficulty adjusting towards the freedom of college and ended up struggling. His grades lagged and he soon found himself on academic probation. His Sophomore year failed to go much better and from the outset of the second semester, he found himself dis-enrolled and off of scholarship. This left him with two choices enlist or repay nearly $14, 000 in scholarship dollars. After some soul searching he chose to enlist.
Although his experiences with ROTC have come back to haunt him on occasion, Navy boot camp is giving him a fresh start. Christopher goes in on equal footing with all of the other recruits. At 21, he will be among the old men in the crowd, but other than that he looks like every one of the other nervous young people arriving at Great Lakes. The beauty of the actual military training process is how quickly they're able to transform a group of folks from all walks of life and all personality types into a cohesive unit of self-disciplined sailors. The privileges and obstacles with the outside world no longer helping or hindering the individual.
My wife and I anticipate seeing Christopher at his graduation from Navy boot camp. We are very pleased with him, but we also are aware that the mindset of the young man we dropped off a week ago will be much different from the mindset of the person we greet 8 weeks from now. I think every young man goes through a pivotal place in his life where he sheds his childlike leanings and assumes the responsibility of adulthood. For me this was done as i went through my police academy training in the early 90s at roughly a similar age. For many others it can be their time in armed service service. The finished product of this process, always comes away with greater focus, clarity and clearly defined goals for a lifetime. This is the thing I most anticipate as I watch Christopher in the years to come. What are the things he'll do to leave his mark about the world. Our family has a long line of men who lived out such beliefs as honor, duty and courage. It is rewarding to see the next generation embrace these values as well.
Author's Resource Box
Navy boot camp can be an intimidating experience not only for the recruit, but also for parents as well. There are many great resources online to help parents better understand and support their children as they go through Navy basic training.
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