Last Friday I had the chance to attend a Scotty McCreery concert at Riverwind in Norman. He sings a song called “Cab in a Solo.” At the end of his song, he raises his cup and gives a toast to the legend Toby Keith due to his passing less than a month ago. This inspired me to listen to more of Toby Keith’s music and reminisce. One of his top five songs is “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue.” Although I have heard it before, it made me kind of emotional. Not only thinking about his death, but also about the story of his life and how this song is impactful for so many. The song mentions the Fourth of July, and that is typically the only time of year I would hear that song being played.

On another note, I had a pretty serious conversation with my mom yesterday about me thinking about my future plans and having the strong urge to serve in the Air Force post graduation. Although there is still many things to think about and various factors to get to that point, when I re-listened to Toby’s song I just had a strong feeling in my chest.That feeling really made me want to drop everything and be immersed in growing mentally, physically, and emotionally in the military to not only be of service to my country, but to also protect my future children. As of right now, I have not been able to shake this passionate feeling of wanting to serve. I have felt this way for at least a few months now. I am not as passionate about my major/minor and would feel I would be doing my country (and myself) a favor by joining. I have many teammates and family members that have/currently are serving. I have had really good conversations with them to receive their feedback and their advice. I hope to become more informed about what I can do to prepare for this big decision and to ensure it was what I am called to do.