I am a daughter from a strong military background and my extended family consists of lawyers, military officers, former superior court judges, and educators. I am also a part of a family where both sides have a strong relationship with God. My dad is a pilot for the American Airlines, while my mom is a retired military officer, stay-at-home mom. I am the youngest of three. My sister is 23 and has a successful job and my brother is 20, still trying to find his way. I am 17, almost 18, in my senior year of high school trying to live up to my expectations and my family’s expectations of me.

My dad was born and raised in Rhode Island and is a graduate of North Kingstown High School and the United States Air Force Academy. After graduating from the Air Force Academy, he went into pilot training for a year before his first 5-year assignment as a KC-135 air-refueling aircraft pilot in New York. From there, he cross-trained into a C-130 airlift aircraft and at the same time, training for American Airlines. He has been flying for the company for 25 years. My dad is a reserved individual, which is why he is often seen standing to the side of my mom all the time. As for his religion, he is quiet about that too. He enjoys reading the bible and at night, I have passed by my parents’ room and have seen him on his knees, leaning over his bed. Then, I look over to see my mom asleep. I noticed he waits until she falls asleep. Sometimes I hear him talk about praying to my grandfather. My grandfather was a WWII Prisoner of War and was a judge for several years until he retired. My grandmother and he moved in with us on October, 2007. My mom had retired from her job so they would have someone to look after them. After my grandfather died, in August of 2009, my mom could not take care of Grammy any longer. So, my parents and grandmother together decided that in November, 2011 she live in an assisted living home.

My mom was born and raised in New Mexico and is also a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy. It was the second year that women were accepted into the military academies. After graduating, she went into aircraft navigator training for one year and then she went to her first 5-year assignment in New York with my dad. My mom and dad initially met at the Air Force Academy, but they only started dating when they went into pilot training. Her next flying assignment was Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Air National Guard where her unit was activated and deployed to the Middle East for the Persian Gulf War. By then, my older sister was 10 months old.

When my mother returned from the war, she cross-trained into the C-130 aircraft to be co-located with my dad in Rhode Island. While my mom and dad were flying in Rhode Island with the Guard, they were also doing other duties. My mom was an Emergency State Plans and Programs Officer and very involved with establishing emergency procedures for Rhode Island's Emergency Management Agency. She was also a USAFA Admissions Liaison Officer helping students gain admission into the Air Force Academy. She retired to take care of my dad's parents who moved into our home. They had a lot of health issues and they were not able to take care of all their medical needs. Although she is a stay at home mom, she does a lot of volunteer work for Bay View as an assistant coach, a Vice President for the RI Catholic School Parent Federation, and a member of Senator Reeds military academy congressional nomination board. She is a very busy mom. She wakes up at 5 am every day and goes strong until she lays her head down at 9 pm or later. My mother was raised with a strong faith in God, and even though her day may be hectic, she always finds time to pray the rosary.

My sister, Cassandra, graduated from La Salle Academy and was the third in my family to go to the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA). After graduating in 2012 as a commissioned Second Lieutenant officer, she went to intelligence school in San Angelo, TX for six months. Now, she is stationed at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH as an intelligence officer working on worldwide missions. In her sophomore year at USAFA, Cassandra was diagnosed with Celiac disease and has been struggling with gastrointestinal issues and other food allergies. It is a major concern for her because if she is deployed to another country, she might not be able to maintain her dietary restrictions. It was a problem when she went to North Africa and lived on chocolate pudding for two weeks. She is supposed to maintain a minimum Air Force weight of 108 pounds.

She has had a tough time for about three and a half years now, but she keeps praying to God that she stays healthy. My sister has been trying to have a stronger relationship with Him for a while now. She went to two youth conferences this year that made her reflect on her inner self and now mostly listens to gospel and other music to keep her mind pure. My sister is the only person that I really look up to. She is just the ideal, beautiful woman I want to be. Besides my sister, I have a brother who I find is very hard to get along with.

My brother, Thomas is a graduate of Bishop Hendricken High School. He was a cross-country and track star through all four years. My brother was accepted into Bryant University, but at the end of his first year, my parents felt he needed more maturity. He is now attending the local community college and working at Lowe's helping to pay for his education. Thomas was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) in third grade, which makes it hard for him to be organized and efficient. My parents feel that in time, my brother will mature and become more responsible. The good things about my brother are that he is very bright, creative, and loves to do things for other people. He is a people person. If I were Thomas, I would have studied to become a lawyer because he wins every argument with me. He is smart! He knows what he is saying and he knows that he is right. Sometimes in arguments with my parents, he has a way of putting a spin on words. He is relentless. I know that when his maturity catches up, he will someday be successful. Everyone around me is successful. It is admirable, and yet a little frightening because I want to be successful too! I want to be able to live up to the same expectations, but often I feel different.

I know I have intelligence, but expressing it is another story. I have always kept in mind what I have heard my mom say, “Anyone with some intelligence and a lot of motivation can do amazing things.” I am a hard worker, but ever since I was little, I have had a difficult time with comprehension and focusing. I have to work harder than everyone else because intelligence is natural and easy for them. For me, it is frustrating. I will study for two hours, others will study for 30 minutes and I will still receive a lower grade than them. When I am reading, I often find myself getting off track while skimming the words. I am reading the words but thinking of something else! After wasting a whole two minutes skimming, at the end of a page, I realize that I did not comprehend anything that I had just read. Therefore, I would have to go back and reread. Sometimes it is just ONE sentence that I do not comprehend and I have to read it more than two times. Once I get comfortable and have been sitting down for a while, I manage to read through eight pages and it starts happening again. I never told my mom this, but I have mentioned I have trouble comprehending. She knows it and sees it. She says she used to have to work harder than everyone else too. Another thing I have trouble with is saying what I want to say. I know what I want to say, but I just have a hard time knowing how to say it aloud or writing it on paper. Though I have difficulty with comprehending and telling stories, my enthusiasm and motivation overcomes them.

Like I said earlier, I look up to my sister. When I was little, while she was at La Salle, I said I would go there too, and up until just before she graduated from the Air Force Academy, I told myself I wanted to go there as well. I did not really have a reason why I wanted to go there. Maybe, because she went! I became an altar server because she was one. And I think the reason why I wanted to go into the military is because she did, as well as my parents. Today, I am a senior at Bay View and I have had the best experiences here, but also, my career preferences have changed. After just one visit, I knew I wanted to go to Bay View. It felt right for me. I want to do something that I think I would be more comfortable with and have the ability to be more expressive. Even though I do not have the best writing experience, I still have four more years to improve. I want to go to college to study criminal justice so that I can hopefully, in the future, become a detective. I have a feeling they have to write a lot of reports.

Being in a military family, I think I have enough knowledge of what the qualifications are, to be a part of law enforcement. I know about respect, discipline, education, patriotism, and similar protocols that both the military and law enforcement practice on a regular basis. They both serve the community and I like that! I just feel it is my calling. One more thing I want to mention is that, I have never experienced a strong emotional calling to God. I feel like I do not have a strong relationship with Him because I have never experienced anything traumatic. I know about Him, I read and learn about Him, but I do not think I feel Him the same way my family does. I wonder if this is normal and it bothers me. My mother said that my sister went through the same thing, wondering and questioning about God. Again, it is another expectation that I think about a lot. I hope and expect that one day I will know when I am close to Him.

I have so many high expectations for myself and I feel like I have to succeed in order to fit in with my family. I just want to do something meaningful in my life and I hope that if I keep thinking that way, I will meet all my expectations.