🤠 How To Return to the Scene of a Crime and Resurrect An Old College Flame

Day 49:  Don't Be a Fugitive 

by Edward Smith

23 Aug 2020

Turn Yourself In, To Something Better

 If you read my last article entitled 🤠  How To Do the Time When You Do the Crime, you'll learn that I ended up trading my civilian life for a military one. It's not for everyone, but for me it was a great trade.  

What you might not have learned from my last article is I got to keep making trades after that point.  Eventually I got to trade my military life for a second chance at attending college.   

That was important, because I was a college drop out.  My life had been heading no where.  I had no plan.  I was a loser.   The military life gave me a new direction.  I became a winner.   It was trans-formative.  It saved me.  

Your story doesn't have to be like mine, but listen to my story anyways.  You might learn something.  It's a good one.

False Premises and the G.I. Bill

I wish I could say I joined the military because I had a strong push and need to serve my country.  Unfortunately, I'd be lying if I said any of that.   

To be honest.  I was still being a short sighted, entitled little brat.   I joined up with the military to take advantage of the G.I. Bill.  I saw the G.I. bill as a free ticket back into college.  I had no idea what the military life was about or what it was actually like.  

Luckily for me, the military is a great and patient teacher.  It straightened me out.   I became a scared nobody, in a strange unforgiving environment.  I wasn't a very good soldier, and the drill instructors knew it, so they were constantly coming after me.  I was an easy target.   To survive I had to learn become better at things quickly.

Nobody cared about my backstory.  I wasn't special.  If I wanted something I had to earn it.   That was true for all things.  Professional or personal.

That realization impacted me.  If I wanted to go back to college I would have to earn it.  People would say no, but I would have to keep going after it until they said yes.  I would have to do whatever it took.  

So that's what I did.  I took my work training seriously.  I started grilling my trainers for extra lessons.  I asked to take on more responsibility, and I worked hard to get better at my job.   I did whatever people needed.  I didn't refuse work, and I didn't tell people no.  Whenever things were calm, I dropped hints about wanting to go back to school.  I did it so often it became irritating.    

After a certain point.  People decided to let me try.   Anything to shut me up.   They gave me a deal, and I took it.   In return, I got back into college.   

      

Want to Know What Happened?   Read My Next Article.