It’s 5 A.M. and I take in a breath of that morning air—suddenly I dart off onto the road. I’m not running for a preset amount of time. The goal, to complete two miles in under fifteen minutes—and then to finish my full five-mile run in under 35 minutes.
I’m not in cross country or track...I’m in the Army. No dreams of being just any normal soldier because anyone can do that and I don’t want to be just anyone, I want to be a ranger. A true soldier.

“Why do you do it, Spencer? Why are you so gung ho about this?” ask my friends, family, and teachers.
“The money, and the benefits,” I reply. But that’s because that’s what they want to hear.
I’m choosing the Army for those reasons, but they aren’t the true purpose.

























“When I go home people'll ask me, Hey Hoot, why do you do it man? What, you some kinda war junkie? You know what I'll say? I won't say a goddamn word. Why? They won't understand. They won't understand why we do it. They won't understand that it's about the men next to you, and that's it. That's all it is.”
Those words are spoken by a man known to simply as “Hoot”. To me...idol. A true soldier.

As I finish my run I think to myself about the questions and strange looks from those I tell about my dreams. Heck. Even the doubters. But none of it gets to me because I’m also thinking about the good things.
In fact. I ignore the skepticism because I know I will succeed. I know I will be an Army ranger. Why? My drive is unstoppable, my will is unfaltering, I am what I am...a true soldier.