How the Military Shaped My Life

Forward 1
Antonio M. Forward
Professor   Jennie Hensarling
English 101
9 November 2011
How the Military Shaped My Life
For me the decision to join the military provided me with discipline and taught me leadership skills that will forever have an impact on who I am as a person.   Many young people in United States decide to join the military after high school each year.   Although military life can be challenging it can be rewarding and beneficial as well.
I grew up in Florida, the second youngest of six children.   My parents were hard working people who believed in honest work and obeying the rules.   They instilled this message to my siblings and me on a regular basis.
I was shy and reserved during my childhood.   My family believed that children should be seen but not heard and that certainly fit my personality.   I was a good student throughout my school years and although small in stature, I was athletic.   I played high school football.
Although I was a good student, I knew what I wanted to do after high school.   I believed that once you graduated high school, you were supposed to leave home and be more responsible for your life.   As a result of this belief I decided to join the military.
I contacted a recruiter for the U.S. Army and met with him several times.   We discussed a wide range of Army career fields, including working with computers, the transportation field, and being an infantry man.   Due to my score on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery
                                                                                                                                          Forward 1
test, my recruiter informed me that I had a choice of becoming an infantry man or transportation.   To me that was an easy decision; take transportation, drive everywhere and see the world.
Arriving at basic training I quickly learned that discipline was to be the key to having a successful military life.   It was easy for me to obey the rules because...