Anticipating 2012
2012 is going to be a big year for the great Crate. There is a lot that I know is going to happen and there is a lot I hope is going to happen. There are goals that will only begin to take shape in 2012 and there are goals that if I apply myself can be completed by year’s end. My theme for next year is going to be expansion - the expansion of inner and outer self, social understanding, and boundaries. I am going to throw myself entirely into every situation I come across just to see how I react. I am going to take every opportunity I can to grow, develop, and learn. I am going to lay everything on the line and let whatever may come arrive when the time is right. So much is going to be thrown at me that I will have to process as new challenges arise, so I will be in a constant state of go. While meeting all of these challenges, I am going to focus on expanding my internal world while I extend my reach into the external world - I want to begin the process of harmonizing what I think with what I do.
To begin the year I will be in boot camp for two and a half months. Even though I have already been in the Air Force since summertime of 2011, this is going to be the real beginning of my military career. And what a beginning it is going to be. January 3rd is when everything changes for me. Out of everything I am facing going into the Air Force I have a feeling basic training is going to be the worst part. I suppose it is good I will get it out of the way first so everything that follows can get progressively better - school, then base assignment, then going overseas, etc. The way I’m looking at it is I have to go through hell to earn the right to the privileges the Air Force offers. I have to earn the right to wear that uniform. My general plan for basic training is to keep my head down and learn everything I need to so I can be the best airman I can be. I have heard from many people it is more mental than physical - either way, I am preparing myself the best I can so the journey through can be as painless as possible. I have the advantage of being a few years older as well (I am twenty, turning twenty-one in basic training), and the two people I’ve met so far in DEP that are going in with me are both eighteen.
After basic training I will be moving on to tech school. I won’t know where this is until almost the end of basic training because I am going in the mechanical aptitude area, which basically means I don’t have a specific job yet. I will be given a list of jobs while I’m in basic to choose from and that will dictate where I go from there. Once I am out of basic training I will have my laptop back so I can get back online. I will have much more free time at tech school compared to basic but chances are I will still be busy with 8 hour classes during the week and study time at nights. While I am at tech school my focus will be on learning my job inside and out and preparing for my first base assignment. Depending on the job I get tech school will be 1-3 months, although a few jobs I might have available will go longer than 3 months. If everything goes smoothly I will be on my first base in the summertime. I’m not so concerned with where I get stationed in the US because I really want to travel overseas. Anywhere that isn’t where I am now (Michigan) is fine with me. I love this state but I’m ready to see more of the world than the eclectic city of Detroit.
A big part of 2012 for me is going to be self improvement; specifically physical fitness. In basic I will have mandatory PT days which I will continue to keep up through tech school and beyond. By the time 2013 rolls around I want to be in the best shape of my life, so I can continue to keep that up into the future. I plan on doing a lot of running (eventually getting into a routine where I run at least five days a week) and weight training at the gym to increase my muscle mass. I want to be a healthy individual, which extends to the food I am going to eat. I want to be conscious about everything I put into my body so I can keep the bad mojo out. Mental health is going to be another focus of mine because of everything I am going to have to learn while I am in the Air Force, and all of it is going to have to be learned quickly. I will continue meditation and once I am out of basic I will return to the routine of every morning / night meditating. It is calming to my mind and allows me to clear out the unnecessary bits while honing in on what is important.
I view life as running in cycles, with pivotal moments marking transitions from one period to the next. My military career is going to be the next cycle of my life and it is going to be the most exciting one yet. It will have the most opportunity, the most challenges, and the most sights to see. It will be full of chances to better myself and my community, something I fully intend on taking advantage of. I am going in for six years but there is a possibility I will be staying in for the full 20 to retire with benefits - but that is a decision I will make while I am in. For now I am planning on six years, and that is what I’m focusing on. And it all begins on January 2nd when I get dropped off at the hotel. From then on everything will unfold ceaselessly until the end of my life as Adam Crate. Which, ultimately, is what I am really focusing on - the Air Force is just one cycle in my life, and all the while I am in I plan on setting myself up for the life I want to live when I get out. That doesn’t mean I will be distracted while I am serving; I intend on giving the Air Force everything I have so I can be the most successful Airman I can be. It simply means I will have my eye on the prize.
