“When I was 17 I graduated high school and like most teens, you don’t know what to do when you graduate high school. I decided to join the Military. I went through basic training and it was the first time I was far away from my family. It was a new experience. There are some people who can’t handle being away from their families so they break down mentally. There was one guy in my platoon who was like that. He had enough of the physical and emotional pain so he had tried to commit suicide. The drill sergeants made an example of him yelling at him and told everyone not to be like him. The very next morning we went on a 12 mile run and the drill sergeant kept using the guy who had quit as an example saying things like “don’t quit guys, don’t be like him” and somewhere in between he says to everyone “Remember guys, when the mind doesn’t give into weakness, a well-trained body follows”. It took me a while to understand the meaning behind that quote because I was too busy concentrating on other things but the quote keeps coming up in my mind when I feel exhausted with work and school.”

Name: A. S. Jara
Age: 24
Major: Math Education