In 1986 I received the OATH of Enlistment. In 1989 I was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Army and accepted the OATH of Office which is a prerequisite to military service. I accepted a full measure of responsibility for this sacred trust. Until this very day I have kept the OATHs in the corner of my mind and continuously accepting that which the American people have invested in me. That trust entails constant preparation and readiness to come to their defense when their security and their way of life are threatened. It has been an honor to serve my country. The military have customs and traditions of which I am proud of and which set us a little bit apart from the rest of society. We have standards of comportment and deportment which others find different, perhaps strange. Often times we are accused of having military minds, and while I may have my own definition of the term, I am more than happy to agree that we do have, and further that we ought to have, military minds. I have been afforded the opportunity that is more than just a job or an obligation; in my mind it's a way of life.