In order to understand where my dad is coming from in his objections of me dating a guy who has chosen a career in the military, you need to know that he too chose a military career, so the job itself isn't something he thinks isn't a good
choice, it's one he thinks isn't a good choice for
me to marry into.
My father has been in the Army for 26 years now, he is a Drill Instructor and I grew up as sort of an Army brat, moving around a lot from town to town from the time I was born until I turned 15.
It has been a life full of a lot of moves, new schools, new neighborhoods and so I never made many friends in most of those other places. I mean why bother to make friends
when maybe next year you would be living
somewhere else? I just never could see the
point.
I’ve become a very good student though, in
spite of it or maybe because of it. I guess I
threw myself into my studies to make up for
my lack of friends and I loved reading because
I could always count on books to be there, in
the next town, the next library. I have myfavorites, books that is, and they have, over time, become my best friends. I suppose I became an avid reader because books were
where I read about the normal kids, with
normal houses and normal families; normal
meaning, for me, staying in one spot all their lives.
Usually while other kids were having birthday
parties and going to camp, I was packing to
move yet again, to the next base where my dad
was assigned to work.
I’m also a diabetic so I’m prone to having
problems if my blood sugar gets too low or my
insulin needs to be adjusted.
That often made the other kids almost afraid of
me because I’d get sweaty hands and eerie skin
pallor during one of those diabetic moments.
Those moments didn't do much for helping me
make friends.
Most kids in elementary and middle school steered clear of me like I was contagious or something, leaving me to be pretty much of a loner.
Sometimes even the teachers seemed to be nervous about my condition, I'd often catch them looking at me, like they were looking for signs of a 'spell' coming on me.
I even made one teacher panic so badly she spoke to my dad about the possibility of home schooling me.
My dad and I had grown close over the years,
especially after my mom left us. He became very good at adjusting my insulin and helping me watch my diet so I stayed healthy for the most part.
I love my dad, he seems so strong and sure of himself and I’ve grown accustomed to listening to his advice because he has always taken very good care of me.
I rarely, if ever, questioned his judgement or went against his wishes. He always had pretty good instincts as far as I was concerned, so I ended up trusting what he said, while growing up under his roof.
But dating Steve is the one thing I am now determined to do, defying my dad this time, something I usually never do. I know he has my best interests at heart, he has never steered me in the wrong direction with his advice before, but
this time I have decided to stand my ground if I have to.
I don’t even know why for sure because Steve isn’t even the kind of guy I usually dreamed about falling for.
was more attracted to guys who looked like surfers, blonde hair and slender.
several times a week. I guess that's what the Army workouts do for some guys. He also has dark hair, dark brown, almost black.
But somehow, when our gazes met and he shook my hand at the barbecue, it suddenly felt like a jar of lightning bolts had been opened, hitting me with jolts of awareness that I found impossible to ignore.
Truth be told, I usually never noticed guys much anyway, but the ones who had caught my eye were usually surfer
types, something Steve definitely was not.
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