Hero Writing assignment

The following is the paper I started in Portland, and finally finished for class.

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The Hero’s Journey

Adrianne Snyder


There are several people that I admire, yet I wouldn’t say that anyone of them is my hero. Not because they haven’t done anything heroic, all of us have at different times whether we knew it at the time or not. Each of the people that I admire has done things that might be considered heroic, yet they were things that they did because it needed doing.

The ones that I consider heroes are the young men and women that have volunteered for the armed forces. Each of them has volunteered for their own selfish reasons. Some joining for education, for a job, to get away from home, to challenge themselves, and as many reasons as there are people. They know that there is something out there for them to do, so they join the military to start their journey through life. This is the first life changing decision for them to make, and quite possibly the hardest. These young men and women are joining at a time where there is great conflict, and they don’t know if they will end up in the middle of the conflict or not. No matter what job they end up doing, or where they end up serving, the main part of their job is to protect the rest of us.

No matter which branch of the military they choose to go to, there are tests for them to meet. Some are physical tests, some are mental tests. They all must take and pass these tests. Once these tests are passed, the hard part begins. Basic training is where they will be pushed farther and harder past any limits that they thought they had. Once through basic training, they have become stronger, more disciplined and ready to start the next phase of training.

When they get to the next phase of their training for the job that they will do for the time that they signed up for, those in charge are looking to help them become good at their job and more rounded as an individual. These young men and women are getting the training necessary to face a challenge that is bigger than they ever thought was possible. Those that are training them are making sure that they are ready to face that challenge.

The challenges that they face at first are those of a very personal nature. They are facing their own weaknesses, having to learn how to obey without question, and how to work with others as a team. Later the challenges they face will come from others, either through the job they have chosen or because of where they are deployed. When they are deployed to a country that is in the middle of civil unrest, or war, these young people are in harms way. Everyday they have to face new fears, will there be a gun battle, will the natives be thankful for them being there or will there be anger. Yet they get up each day and face the days challenge with determination.

It is because of the training that they receive in an ongoing process that they are able to take theirs fears, misgivings, and weaknesses and overcome them. They have been given tools to gain strength, to face the fears without being scared, and to turn their weaknesses into strengths. In the process these young people go from being teens with a child’s view of the world to adults with a strong vision of what they can do to make the world a better place to live in. They are better trained to handle the obstacles that will come their way as they go through the rest of their lives.

If you were to ask these young people if they thought of themselves as heroes, they would say no. They do not consider themselves to be doing anything extraordinary, they are doing a job. Doing what they have been trained to do, they have a job and they are doing that job to the best of their abilities.

Their home is wherever they are stationed; temporary housing is where they are deployed to. They are stationed far from their families, and deployed even father away from their loved ones. Some will use the time as a stepping off point for the rest of their lives, some will make a career out of it. Either way, these young men and women are making sacrifices as well as preparing for their own futures. These sacrifice help to ensure the freedoms that we sometimes take for granted.

When they are done with their time in the military some will go back to where they began this journey. It is when they return to the home they grew up in, are around friends and family that they realize how much they have changed, how much they have matured. With a supportive family, and friends that care about whom they have become, they will find that home is a good place to begin the next adventure in their lives.

I have been where these young people are. I was in the Air Force, and know what the challenges are that they face. They are my heroes because they have joined in time where conflicts are all over the world and they could very easily be deployed to any one of them. I also find my self know beginning another Hero’s Journey with a new calling. The calling itself may not be new to me, yet I have finally heeded that calling and am now facing the challenge and the demons and fears that have kept me from hearing it. I am looking forward to completing this journey, and am very proud of all the young men and women that have heeded their calling to be part of the military.

I’m especially grateful, and proud of my sons Gregory and Kyle, my son-in-law Josh, my nephew Don, and my almost daughter Christine. They have joined knowing the challenges that they face with a world that is more prone to fight than talk. Right now Gregory and Josh are in Iraq, Kyle goes to Iraq in the spring, I don’t know if or when Don will go, and Christine will be going to basic training in May. They should be commended for taking on the role of protector.

Long overdue update

I am terrible at keeping up with this blog. Life keeps getting in the way. So here are the latest updates, finally.

I am going back to school, this time I'm following what I want to do instead of what others want me to do. I'm not taking accounting courses, I'm pretty much done with being a bookkeeper. I'm tired of people who have hired me or the company I work for to keep their books getting mad or not listening to what I have to say about their spending habits. These are companies that I had kept books for, and they didn't like what I was telling them about how they spend their money and what they could do to lessen their debt and make their business successful. Anyways, I'm done with that. I will be going to the Southwest Institute for Healing Arts. I am going after an Associates degree in Mind/Body Transformational Psychology. The main topics I will be mastering are Life Coaching, Hypnotherapy, and Chinese Shamanism. I will be starting on the 22nd of this month. I am so excited. I will graduate in April 2010.

Talena has moved to nice home. She is scheduled for a c-section on the 20th of this month. She has started home schooling the girls, Gynesis really likes learning, Lavieya likes part of it. Lavieya is still a little young to actually be in school, so Talena is preparing the way for learning to happen with her. Gynesis is doing really well.

Gregory is in Iraq. He is doing good. He can't really tell me anything else. The best way to contact him is through e-mail messages. I know he would appriciate e-mails from everyone, it may take a few days to answer back. He is scheduled to come home as soon as early March or April. We won't know the exact date until it gets closer to time for him to come home. He did get a promotion to Corpral.

Kyle is doing good. He has his own place in California. He will be going to Iraq in the spring. The good thing about his going is that he is a CB. They don't send in the construction crew if what they will be building is in danger of being blown up right away. He is an E-4, which I believe is a Petty Officer. I will have to ask him if that is right.

As for Jerry and I, that's a little more difficult. I'm not sure what to say about this. We are still talking and are still friendly. It is really weird. That's all I'm willing to say here.

Anyways, that's a quick update. More later.

Live fully....

A long overdue update

I know it has been quite some time since I have updated everyone on what is going on in my life. It has been rather busy here.

Jerry's brother Chris passed away last month. We all knew that it was coming, he's had heart problems since he was in his twenties. It was still hard. Jerry's Mom and older sister came down from Washington and stayed for a week. The memorial service was wonderful. A lot of family and friends were there to pay their respects. The funeral service was very nice and very simple.

I have taken the opportunity to make money with my crochet. I am making small draw string purses, and there is a little shop that is willing to sell them. I have a couple of friends that set up booths at craft shows that are willing to have them on their tables as well. So I have been very busy making draw string purses.

Gregory is now in Iraq and will be there until March maybe April. I am very grateful that the work he does is fixing computers, printers, and phone systems. He works in a shop where the equipment is brought to him. He won't directly be in harm's way. About the time that Greg gets back Kyle will be going to Iraq. Because Kyle is a CB, the area he will be in will at least be less likely to have fighting.

Talena has been scheduled to have her baby on the 20th of October. She has started to home school Gynesis, Lavieya is picking things up too, even though she isn't really ready for school.

I now that more has been going on, I just can't remember it all. That's just another reason why I should post more often.

Anyway, Live fully.....

My four-legged friend

Jebo, laying across my queen sized bed. This was taken a year ago.













My dog Jebo was 13 years old, and just within the last year or so started showing her age. She had cataracts, couldn't hear very good, had arthritis in her hip joints, and within the last four months started having violent seizures. We took her to the vet's office, and they couldn't find anything medically wrong with her that would cause seizures. We put her on anti-seizure medication and a medication for the arthritis. I had to crush the pills and put them on a half peanut butter sandwich.

Yesterday we took her back to the vet for a check up. Before we took her to the vet's office she had another seizure. The vet still couldn't find any reason for them, her liver was good, her kidneys were good, she didn't have worms. The only conclusion that the vet had was that she probably had a brain tumor. The tests for that are expensive and she would still be treated with medications.

So we refilled her prescriptions and took her home. She seemed to be doing fine. She'd been eating and drinking, yet she lost weight. Later that afternoon she had another seizure. We had to take her to the Humane Society to have her put to sleep. The seizures had affected how her back legs worked, this last one affected her front legs. We just couldn't see her suffer anymore. We are both wondering now if some times when she would be running in her sleep weren't actually small seizures.

She was grateful that we took her to be put to sleep. She knew that she would no longer suffer as she had been.

Jebo will be missed, she had a very long, loving life.

Helium

I have joined Helium. It is a website for writers. It gives me the opportunity to write and even earn a little money. If I did it right the title should link you to my site on Helium. If not, here is the link again: Helium.

Please check put the articles I've written, and check back periodically to see what new articles I've written.

Live fully....

An update and a Question....

Well, I've been let go from my job. Which I knew was going to happen. Looking back on the way things went, I should have given notice when the CPA that had hired me had been fired. I should not have been there without the supervision of a CPA. I was asked to run year end reports, financial reports, and other things that should have only been done by a CPA or at least with the guidance of one. So I am looking for work still, I have also applied for unemployment. I have managed to save a little money so I will not have to worry so much about making the bills.

I have found that while I was not happy at my job and am relieved at not working there anymore, I am also a little depressed that I got fired. I'm keeping busy to help me get past this.

I am editing the one story that I did finish (Dad, if you don't mind, I will be sending it on to you within a couple of weeks. That's my goal anyways). I will be finishing the other three that I have started. I have been investigating self-publishing businesses, if anyone has any recommendations or thoughts, please let me know. I know that I will not be able to make a living with writing, I will be able to supplement my income some.

I have also sent for a program that will allow me to create my own patterns for crochet. It will be another way for me to supplement my income. I will keep you all updated on this endeavor as well.

Now for my question. Do you work to live or live to work?

Live fully....

It's been a long time...

since I've actually written here. My life has been very busy. Where to begin to get you all caught up.

I've been working for a company that was a good opportunity at the time. Now, not so much. In the last few months I have been made to feel that I am less than adequate to perform my job. Also, that I can not communicate properly. I am in the process of finding another job.

Now for the kids. Talena is expecting again. She is due sometime at the end of October beginning of November. She is eating healthy, she has actually started cooking again. I am very proud of the mother, wife, and daughter that she has become. She will be homeschooling the kids. She is absolutely beautiful.

Gregory is going to 29 Palms for a month for extensive preparation for being deployed to Iraq in August. Because of th kind of job that he does, he will always be on base. He will be less likely to be in harms way. I am very proud of him.

Kyle will be coming home from Korea on the 5th or 6th of June. I will be going to California to pick him up. He is doing so good. He helped to build roads, laid concrete for walls, and did some volunteer work while he was stationed there. I am very proud of him as well.

As for Jerry and I, it's gotten rather odd. He has moved out of the house, even though he says it's the hardest thing for him to do. He still loves me and I still love him. I think that part of the reason we can't live together is that he has never lived alone. With our work schedules he was alone in the house everyday before he would go to work. This made him feel lonely, and made him depressed. He is living with his sisters, and there is always someone there during the day, so he is never alone for long. We still spend time together on the weekends. He's helped repair things for me, including fixing my van. We are better apart than together under the same roof. Like I said, it has gotten very odd.

I think for my future I will follow what the IQ test in the previous post says I am. I am going to try my hand at writing and publishing. I know that I may not make a living at publishing my own work, yet I believe I can supplement my income with my writing.

So, here's my question, am I hard to understand? Please let me know one way or the other.

Live fully....

What is your IQ?

The Classic IQ Test

My Result: Insightful Linguist

You are gifted with the natural fluency of a writer and the visual and spatial strengths of an artist. Those skills contribute to your creative and expressive mind.



Insightful linguists can take complex concepts and articulate them to just about anyone. You have a gift with words and insight into processes and the way people think. These talents enable you to explain things clearly to people.

Helen Keller is a great example of an Insightful Linguist. Blind, deaf and mute, she was still able to put things together in her mind and to understand complex ideas. She could do that because she was able to conceptualize ideas internally. Though she could not literally see, she had the visual and spatial skills necessary to understand patterns on an abstract level. She learned to read, write and ultimately became a writer on issues of social justice.



You have an uncanny ability to work your way out of sticky situations using your talent with words. Crossword puzzles, debates — you're particularly well equipped to come out on top since you can read people well.



Like Charles Dickens, your verbal skills go far beyond having a good vocabulary. Dickens' genius was in the artful and descriptive way he crafted sentences. Also Dickensian, is your keen eye for detail and your adeptness for identifying the best way to express an idea based on your given surroundings and circumstances.



Your ability to communicate your vision clearly will take you far. So enjoy being perceptive, and make the most of your abilities as an insightful linguist.

What are you?
http://web.tickle.com/jumpto?test=uiqogt&c=50652