WHY!?!?

Greetings to all that have found their way to my blog for the week. In this weeks blog, I will begin by telling you a little more about myself. Then I will explain a little bit about why I selected the M.A. program and will finish this blog by telling you a bit more about why I write.

The picture above is of my father and two older siblings. I am from North Carolina originally and that is where my family resides to this day. I miss seeing my family frequently, but at the same time, I’m glad we are so far apart. My siblings and I have totally different lifestyles. That is what happens when you grow up and become independent from such an early age.

Both my mother and father were alcoholics while we were growing up. I would often find myself having to make my own meals. Living in the country, surrounded by farms, there was always plenty of food around. So I am thankful for one of the many things my father taught me in life, how to fish. My father and I would fish in the evenings, go home and clean our catch while my mother would cook the fish. After seeing how to do all of this, I caught on and was doing it all myself by the age of eight.

When my parents found sobriety, I was twelve years old. My parents loved each other, but could no longer live together. It was alcohol that kept them together for so long. So I was given the choice of which parent I wanted to live with. My two sisters were daddies girls, literally got anything they wanted from him. While I was a mommas boy. I could go on and on with this whole story, but this isn’t the time or place.

In February of 2000, I enlisted in the United States Navy. It was a great honor to serve our country in a time where our nation stood strong and unified, for the most part. When I was eighteen, I loved seeing the commercials, “Join the Navy and see the world!” Some of the places my travels took me to was; Spain, Portugal, Germany, Scotland, Great Britain, Bahrain, Dubai, Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait, and many other places within the United States. Spain was definitely my favorite. The culture their stands next to none. I was even fortunate enough to witness the running of the bulls in 2002. In 2012, I was injured and it put an end to my career in the Navy. I guess it was a blessing in disguise. More than half of my unit didn’t make it home alive from that deployment.

Currently I work at Brookdale Community College on a part time basis. In order to obtain a full time faculty position, a masters degree is required. Since I completed my B.A. at Kean in English studies, It only made sense to stay at Kean for the M.A.. The transition from one degree to the next was seamless.

When we were asked last week to free write, the question made me really think. Why do I write? There are so many reasons that came to mind, but the main recurring thought was that writing allows me to express emotions in ways that I may not be able to otherwise. Writing allows me to log events that have happened in my past, and lets me think more deeply about those events and why I go through the trouble of logging it. In some ways, it gives me clarity in times of uncertainty. Writing has helped me with healing. Healing my mind of the hell that replays on a daily basis. Putting the pieces together one at a time.

Well I hope that you each know a little more about me than you did before this post. I’m looking forward to our next couple of months together.