Never thought I would go through boot camp. Yet there I was, packing my sea bag a week before the date, anxiously waiting for the day to head down to Camp Pendleton.
A few months back I joined the US Naval Sea Cadet Corps. It was something new to me. Everything was modeled after the regulations of the US Navy, even down to their uniforms—Just a few patches discerned the difference between us. I later found out it was the only band of its kind in the nation. I thought to myself, what have I gotten into?
The next two months of preparation were intense. I learned all the regulations and standards of the Sea Cadet Corps and their music repertoire. I thought it was pretty neat.. Until I found out there was a recruit training “boot camp” for newly joined cadets. It shouldn’t be too bad, right? We are still under 18. It’s only, like, a week. And then I saw on the sign up sheet we’d be sent away to Camp Pendleton marine base.
Never knew it was that cold in San Diego, a city so close to Mexico, full of surfers and swimming trunks. I was scared. I hadn’t slept the night before.
We entered a gate …show more content…
But in the barracks, we would tell each other that we tried well and would comfort each other. We told stories. Each night we’d gather around each other's bunks helping one another study, memorize, and shine our shoes. Each day went by slower and slower as we neared the end. The sense of camaraderie had overcome me. I thought it was a satisfying experience as we did not know each other just few days before. I almost had a feeling of not wanting to head back home, knowing I would miss the people around me and the staff cadets even though they marched us into submission over and over; they gave us an experience I could never forget. Those were the memories I had when we took our last pictures with our division just minutes before stepping onto the parade
A few months back I joined the US Naval Sea Cadet Corps. It was something new to me. Everything was modeled after the regulations of the US Navy, even down to their uniforms—Just a few patches discerned the difference between us. I later found out it was the only band of its kind in the nation. I thought to myself, what have I gotten into?
The next two months of preparation were intense. I learned all the regulations and standards of the Sea Cadet Corps and their music repertoire. I thought it was pretty neat.. Until I found out there was a recruit training “boot camp” for newly joined cadets. It shouldn’t be too bad, right? We are still under 18. It’s only, like, a week. And then I saw on the sign up sheet we’d be sent away to Camp Pendleton marine base.
Never knew it was that cold in San Diego, a city so close to Mexico, full of surfers and swimming trunks. I was scared. I hadn’t slept the night before.
We entered a gate …show more content…
But in the barracks, we would tell each other that we tried well and would comfort each other. We told stories. Each night we’d gather around each other's bunks helping one another study, memorize, and shine our shoes. Each day went by slower and slower as we neared the end. The sense of camaraderie had overcome me. I thought it was a satisfying experience as we did not know each other just few days before. I almost had a feeling of not wanting to head back home, knowing I would miss the people around me and the staff cadets even though they marched us into submission over and over; they gave us an experience I could never forget. Those were the memories I had when we took our last pictures with our division just minutes before stepping onto the parade