Military brats have this toughness: they're almost like orphans or foster children; they develop little mechanisms. It sets you up to look at things a little differently.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I've come to admire our military kids more than you all will know, because you guys are heroes. And the only way your parents are able to serve is because you guys hold it down, and you do it with maturity beyond your years.
The constant movement of a military life can be tough on children. My father was an officer in the army, and I was forced to change elementary schools six times.
I am an Air Force brat - that's the terminology they use for military kids who are traveling constantly.
A lot of child soldiers lose their minds.
Oddly, the military world is one of great sameness. There is an orderly quality to life on an army base, and even the children of the military are brought up with that sense of order and sameness.
I'm trying to raise the awareness of the troops that, when they deploy and go to war, it's not just them at war - it's also their family. Their family is having to go through all the hardships and the stresses.
I have a tremendous amount of respect for military families. To have to worry about your loved ones and still try and live a normal life is extremely hard.
Children play soldier. That makes sense. But why do soldiers play children?
The young people I work with every day and serve the nation in the armed forces in general, and the Marine Corps in particular, have broken the mold and stepped out as men and women of character who are making their own way in life while protecting ours.
Any child soldier has to go through a lot of love, care and understanding to become normal.