Day 8

I feel like a changed person. Even though I’ve only been a soldier for 8 days, this has been an unforgettable experience. I said before that I thought I was glad Captain Mendoza made me a part of this war, but now I know I am glad. Over the past week I have discovered a side of myself that I never knew existed. I’ve fought in a battle, and I lived. I walked through piles of dead bodies, and killed many soldiers. I got shot with a bullet, and I’ve survived losing my best friend. No matter what happened, I didn’t give up, and I didn’t turn back because I knew I had to fight. I was well aware that I could have escaped, and if this battle had happened on the first day, I would have. But today, I put in all my effort, and this is what made me a soldier. I realized that it doesn’t matter if you’ve been fighting in battles your whole life, or if you just fought your first battle. It matters how much effort you put in when the battle comes, and it matters how strong you stay. You have to stick to your cause, and fight as hard as you can, because if you don’t, there is no way you will win. Whistler ran away; big, tough, mean Whistler who wanted to strangle a baby. I learned from that, that you can pretend to be whatever you want, but when it comes down to the real thing, only the people who are strong at heart and true to their cause, will do the best. We did not win the battle, but as a person, I won a lot. I gained courage, strength, and knowledge that I would have never gotten if not for this battle. And I gained confidence that I will be back, and we will win the forty-fourth war.

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