Pietas (Veteran Voices)
Pietas / Citizenship (Veteran Voices)
Transcript
I would say for about the first six months after I got out, I missed it everyday. [LAUGHS] I missed the mission, I missed the structure. I missed the predictability of it, and being purpose-driven as we all are in the service.
I think that, eventually, I learned how to transition into the environment I was in and adapt to it. It did take me the better part of a year to figure out what kind of haircut I should get, [LAUGHS] which was its own kind of challenge.
But, eventually, I think, I was able to rebuild the tribe that I belong to through the military vets that I found around me, and the other student friends that I made who were civilians and had some other experiences that helped me broaden my horizon.
So I absolutely experienced a loss of community and a loss of purpose. When we get out of the military, I think we're really excited to get our DD214. And then we go home. And it sets in that our friends still live there and possibly do the same thing. And we've gone out and done at least a handful of other things since then.
I think for me, I was very intentional in making friends. If nothing else, I wanted to know people. I wanted to have some kind of network. But I also wanted some kind of purpose. Being a health coach was part of that. And then also, when I started going to community college, I got involved with student council. I got involved in student groups.
And that gave me a greater sense of that kind of giving back again. And it gave me a lot of really good against people to be shaped by. And being selective in who those people were, I think, also really helped my growth process and my transition. It's really a challenge though.
I think that, eventually, I learned how to transition into the environment I was in and adapt to it. It did take me the better part of a year to figure out what kind of haircut I should get, [LAUGHS] which was its own kind of challenge.
But, eventually, I think, I was able to rebuild the tribe that I belong to through the military vets that I found around me, and the other student friends that I made who were civilians and had some other experiences that helped me broaden my horizon.
So I absolutely experienced a loss of community and a loss of purpose. When we get out of the military, I think we're really excited to get our DD214. And then we go home. And it sets in that our friends still live there and possibly do the same thing. And we've gone out and done at least a handful of other things since then.
I think for me, I was very intentional in making friends. If nothing else, I wanted to know people. I wanted to have some kind of network. But I also wanted some kind of purpose. Being a health coach was part of that. And then also, when I started going to community college, I got involved with student council. I got involved in student groups.
And that gave me a greater sense of that kind of giving back again. And it gave me a lot of really good against people to be shaped by. And being selective in who those people were, I think, also really helped my growth process and my transition. It's really a challenge though.