Being a Mother and a Marine

When you see me on campus I look like everyone else; you would never guess I was in the military, let alone in the Marine Corps.

From what I am told, I do not fit the stereotype of a “typical” female Marine. My question to this person with the preconceived notion would be, “What does the typical ‘female Marine’ look like?” The most common answer I receive is someone who is a tomboy and butch, and this response usually gets me heated. I joined my beloved Corps when I was 17. I knew exactly what I wanted to do and where I wanted to be in life. I have fought that Marine Corps stereotype of who I should be, day in and day out.

If you asked any one of my three children who I am, they will tell you I am a mom first, Marine second. The thought of leaving my children for a deployment was one of the biggest reasons I chose to get out after ten years and go back to school. There are many women who continue to serve active or reserve duty as single parents. I salute them, as I know how hard it is to juggle military and family.

I have also done many more things in my life than serving and becoming a veteran. While serving, I went to school to become an EMT, and I volunteered at more than four firehouses during my time stationed in Virginia. I also became a pastry chef after graduating from Le Cordon Bleu. Joining the Marine Corps at such a young age gave me the drive to accomplish more for myself, and to know that I can do anything and everything I put my mind to.

I am not a typical Marine, nor mother, nor woman: I am me. The presumptions that people have of what or who you should be, only dictates your life if you choose to let it. I was told all the time that I could not do this or that and it only got worse once I became a mother. I never listened to anyone else’s views on what I should do or how I should live my life. The next time that you see a student walking around campus, (realize) they just might be in the military and in my case, yes, in the Marine Corps.

 

-Cpl./USMC