I give a big thank you to everyone in the military. I especially admire my parents for being in the military. I think it is very brave and respectable. I also give a big thank you to the military kids. They make sacrifices too. To every veteran and military kid, thank you.

I know what it’s like to live in a military family. Compared to most people who have family in military, I think I got pretty lucky. People who have parents in the military often move from place to place and have to make new friends. My parent’s jobs don’t require us to move like a lot of military families have to,so I do not have to constantly pack up and leave or make new friends.

Both of my parents are in the military. My dad is a logistics officer and my mom is a social worker.  Although I don’t experience the typical ‘ military brat’ lifestyle, I have had some military brat times.

When I was in first grade my dad got deployed to Kuwait. He was going to be gone for six months. I did not believe it at first. There was no way he could be gone for six months. It soon sank in that it was true. He was going to be gone for six months. I was devastated.

I was sad so my mom came up with this way for me to see how  long it was going to be until he got home. We filled a jar with  M&Ms. One for each day he would be gone. I had one every night counting down until he could come home. Sometimes I would get to FaceTime him. He was gone for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I missed him the most during those times. We talked as often as we could. It was coming down to the end of his deployment. There were two more M&Ms in the jar.

I went to school excited knowing that in a few days my dad would be home. I was walking in from recess and my friend ran up to me saying “ I saw your dad in the classroom!  Through the window !!” I thought she was crazy. The teacher told us to get into line. She said “ Amara can you come to the front please?” I thought I was in trouble. I walked to the front of the line embarrassed. I walked into the doorway of the classroom and froze. I saw my dad sitting at my desk. I was so in shock. I looked to the right to find my mom with a bouquet of flowers. I looked to the left to see my grandparents and news team with cameras. I ran to him. I was so excited. He was finally home !!  Now my dad does work in town and does not leave.

My mom on the other hand has a job that requires her to leave quite often. She holds Wounded Warrior events in different states. She has been to Washington, Hawaii,and Nebraska. Wounded Warriors are people who have gotten injured while being in the military who are on their way to recovery.  The Wounded Warrior games are a series of different competitions. They have volleyball, swimming, and basketball.Despite the competitive spin on it, it is all just for fun.

Once again thank you to all the veterans and veteran family members for making sacrifices for our country. I would especially like to thank my parents for working hard to serve our country.