Kelly Brant

On February 1, 1978, I raised my hand and enlisted in the US Army. I now refer to my service years as "finishing school". Afterwards, I went to college and emerged an electrical engineer. In 2012, I completed my masters in psychology. Married. Divorced. Married again. No kids. Moved around a bit. Travelled a bit. You know, the usual.

I tell you, I would love to be a teenager again but sure wouldn't want to be the teenager I was. For starters, I'd try to drool less. Maybe study harder. Maybe not. Be nicer. For such a gangly kid, I was awfully mouthy. And known to be quite the jerk for reasons I still cannot fathom.

Honestly, I remember more details about jobs I had during High School than of High School itself. I worked in a machine shop, sold paint at Montgomery Wards and converted old volkswagens into MG-TD replica cars.

I liked most of my teachers and didn't dislike any of them. My favorite teachers... Ms Cox (physics) and Ms Eckart (english) pop in my head. Wait a minute! Julia Cox and Julie Eckart? Is there a pattern? Doesn't matter. Ms Cox taught me to "not pheer the physics" and Ms Eckart sparked a love for writing. They deserve medals.

Best thing that happened to me was walking into the recruiting station. On February 1, 1978, I enlisted in the Army. Talk about an education. Four short years in the Infantry taught me how to not drool at all.