You would think being in the military you would be prepared for just about anything, right? That you would be able to handle anything thrown your way no matter how big or small. From the time you walk into the recruiting office, you are already being prepared for what is to come next.

You are given everything you need to help get you through the Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) and get you that much closer to joining. You are prepared for what to expect once you get to Basic Training and shown all the videos and listened to all the tips and tricks. Finally, you have made it to Basic, and as soon as you get off the bus, the screaming starts and you are not sure if it is ever going to end. For no rhyme or reason, you are being yelled at to pick things up and put them down, but you'll soon realize they are just preparing you for what to expect up until the day you graduate. You are taught so much from day one of training. No matter how unnecessary it may seem, you are always learning something new every day. They prepare you on everything from how to do correct facing movements all the way to how to properly salute an officer.

It doesn't stop there, though. After graduation you will go through even more training. There, you learn everything you need to know to perform your job to the best of your abilities and deal with things more so on the operational side. The military does just about everything they can to prepare you for the next few years of your life in the service, or so you would think.

What quickly came to light was that there was so much we were not ready for. No one had prepared us for the feelings we felt waking up on holidays and not being able to spend them with our family, or not being able to be home for a funeral. Then there was the first of many goodbyes. We all had those friends that we went through Basic with as well as Tech School that you feel like you had known a lifetime. You have all gotten your orders, but the only problem is each one of you is going somewhere else across the world. The day comes so fast, and it's finally time to leave.

How do you say goodbye to those you have spent so long with, been through so much with? The military doesn't prepare you for that hurt, that feeling of not knowing if you will see them again. There weren't any classes in Basic that prepare you on how to deal with watching people you care so much about move on to a new base to start all over again. All in all, the military teaches you so many things, but in the end, there are just some things you have to figure out how to deal with on your own.