As a military child, I left the United States with my family at the age of five and spent eight years living overseas at duty stations in Japan, Germany, and
Italy. We traveled extensively during vacations to over 20 different countries.
As a result, I claim proficiency in ordering french fries and apple juice in several different languages.
Although moving has brought me some misfortune, and many people would say that living overseas qualifies as adversity, I never felt it was such. Moving from duty station to duty station gave me confidence, resilience, and independence.
I was painfully shy as a young child. But, as I quickly learned, no matter what risks I took, I could always rely on the comfort of someday never seeing any of those people …show more content…
My moves also made me resilient and low-maintenance. I am used to a life of packing light and living off a backpack of books and clothes while in a hotel for months, waiting for our furniture to arrive on a cargo ship. It has given me the ability to enjoy the simplicities of life and not take as much interest in cars, electronics, and money as my peers.
Additionally, growing up on military bases with two working parents made me independent. I walked to school in the morning, took a bus to swim, took the active duty bus back to base, then walked home from the bus stop. On days without swim practice, I found myself either staying at home alone, doing homework and making dinner, or walking across the base to soccer practice.
I thought I'd take this space to tell you where I have lived. It all started with my birth in San Diego, California, but shortly after moved to Kaneohe,
Hawaii for two years, then Memphis, Tennessee for three years. From there we relocated across the Pacific Ocean to Atsugi, Japan (2 years), Stuttgart,
Germany (3 years), and Naples, Italy (3 years).
At that point in my life I was about to enter eighth grade, when my
Italy. We traveled extensively during vacations to over 20 different countries.
As a result, I claim proficiency in ordering french fries and apple juice in several different languages.
Although moving has brought me some misfortune, and many people would say that living overseas qualifies as adversity, I never felt it was such. Moving from duty station to duty station gave me confidence, resilience, and independence.
I was painfully shy as a young child. But, as I quickly learned, no matter what risks I took, I could always rely on the comfort of someday never seeing any of those people …show more content…
My moves also made me resilient and low-maintenance. I am used to a life of packing light and living off a backpack of books and clothes while in a hotel for months, waiting for our furniture to arrive on a cargo ship. It has given me the ability to enjoy the simplicities of life and not take as much interest in cars, electronics, and money as my peers.
Additionally, growing up on military bases with two working parents made me independent. I walked to school in the morning, took a bus to swim, took the active duty bus back to base, then walked home from the bus stop. On days without swim practice, I found myself either staying at home alone, doing homework and making dinner, or walking across the base to soccer practice.
I thought I'd take this space to tell you where I have lived. It all started with my birth in San Diego, California, but shortly after moved to Kaneohe,
Hawaii for two years, then Memphis, Tennessee for three years. From there we relocated across the Pacific Ocean to Atsugi, Japan (2 years), Stuttgart,
Germany (3 years), and Naples, Italy (3 years).
At that point in my life I was about to enter eighth grade, when my