Being a dependent child: This is my life

  • Published
  • By Cassandra Coleman
  • 48th Figther Wing
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  It isn't easy being a kid. Going home and fighting with your siblings, your dog begging you to play with him, a friend getting mad about something that happened two weeks ago, mom asking you to clean the kitchen, a 300-word essay that's due the next day - that's just the results of being a "normal" kid. But, what is it like being a kid when your parent is in the military? Well, to be honest, it isn't much different, and is very different at the same time.

There is a lot going on in the military all the time. Weekends turn into week days. It's not just during the week days that things happen; it's constant, on the weekends and in the summer - sometimes my dad even has to work on the weekend. But it's not all negative. Yes, as a dependant, there are many sacrifices I must make, too, but I always try to look at the positive side of things. We may move around a lot, but the great thing is we move to different places around the world. It's like a big adventure and it's your life - everything from meeting new kids from the opposite side of the world or someone of a different religion! It's always exciting for me to find out where I am going next and what the next chapter in my life will be. 

If my dad wasn't in the military, I never would have met the amazing people that I have, and I know that I've met them for a reason. I have had many friends who all had to move at the same time because our parents are in the military. I have had different best friends, different teachers, as well as different enemies. It's all amazing, but difficult...it's all fun, but scary.

That's how I can really describe it. It's not like any local kid, who was born in North Carolina and grew up there, had their first crush or first kiss, graduated or then got married there. For us, we move constantly. We see things "normal" kids could only have imagined.

The military can be a nightmare at times, but I know it was my dad's dream, and I respect that to the fullest. I won't ever stop respecting that, and I want to follow his wishes no matter how hard it could be. I know he is happy. We leave and we don't turn our heads. We keep looking straight to where the road takes us. There are bumps along the way but what is life without a couple of them? Dreams start but never end, friendships start and sometimes end...that's all there is to it.

The military is not just about war. Everyone has different jobs to do. There are even military reporters! That's something I never would have thought of if I wasn't a military dependant. There are also plumbers, electricians and security. You can't go wrong with those things can you?

They have daily jobs just like anyone else, and are very interesting. Plus, they have their uniforms. They wear "blues" on Mondays, and it makes them look very fancy, which is good. And then there are "BDUs", which is another uniform they have to wear, not every now and then, but every day aside from Mondays.

Being in the military isn't all about looks and what you do. It's about commitment to who you serve. The people in the military are the ones who go and fight for what they believe in, which makes us who we are today. Even if we think it's a small simple task, behind the uniforms, it isn't as easy as we all thought it to be. The military servicemembers go through a lot to let us be who we are. They make sure everything we have now we will always get to keep.

We honor those who have lost their lives because they fought and died for us so we can live on and accomplish what we want in life.