A friend makes a decision.

I have a friend that is on the verge of making a life-changing decision. He is 17 and seriously considering joining the military. The Marines to be more precise.
He may not realize it but he will make far more important decisions later in his life but up till now nothing compares to what lies in his immediate future. I do not envy his position but I am glad that he has become man enough to place himself at this crossroad.

I never joined the military. Not for any disdain as some of my generation held for the armed forces. No, I just was never man enough to confront the issue. Since I have become an adult I have often thought of the sacrifices that others have made to keep my family and me free. Both of my brothers were in the military. My brothers in law (all of them I think) were in the military and all are better men for having done so.

Tonight my friend is taking the tests tonight to determine his skill level and what jobs he will qualify for. I know that he is nervous because he feels that a lot is riding on the results. My friend will do fine at the tests because he is a bright young man. I feel confident that his parents and those around him are proud of him and they have good reason to be.

Regardless of the decision that he makes concerning the military, life is going to start coming at him with amazing speed. I and others will tell him steps to take and steps to miss. He will likely not listen but that is mostly OK. He is quickly becoming a man and will have to make many of his own mistakes and enjoy his own successes.

To my friend: I am proud of you for what you are considering. You are more of man than I ever was at your age as is evident in the direction that you are currently taking in your life. You have my full faith and confidence and my pledge to help you in any way I can.

The simplest and shortest ethical precept is to be served by others as little as possible, and to serve others as much as possible. — Leo Tolstoy

Mostly compliant

I have two things going on right now that I am struggling with.
The first is becoming a vegetarian... again. Cherri & I were vegetarians many years ago and enjoyed it quite a bit. We fell off the wagon so to speak and lived life like normal folks pretty much since that time. Off and on for years, I have wanted to get back to eating meat-free. Eating meat-free is a lot easier these days and there are numerous meat 'replacements' on the market, most of which can be found at the local Walmart. The best are pretty good and the rest are mostly palatable but none of them can replace meat so don't get your hopes up.
If you are thinking of becoming a vegetarian, think of your reasons for eating meat-free. If you are doing it for moral reasons, you might want to skip the meat replacements altogether (at least until you get your feet wet). If you want to leave meat behind because you can't handle the moral issues involved then why be reminded each time you pick up a burger replacement? If you want to get past meat for strictly dieting reasons then the replacements are probably OK. But to remind you, the best are just good and the worst are downright nasty.
The other and totally unrelated issue is marathoning of all things.
I have taken to jogging a bit. I can go 5 miles without too much of a struggle but that is about it. In an effort to shake things up, I started to run and walk instead of trying to run the whole distance. Alternating has allowed me to go greater distances and not suffer too much afterward.
The alternating causes a conundrum to exist in my head.
I see running a marathon as just that, run the whole thing or stay home. I think that is why they call it running a marathon and not participating in a marathon. But I realize that there are probably very few folks that could actually run - or jog - the whole thing. I guess that is why there is a veritable cottage industry that has grown up around walking marathons.
I suppose that you have to do whatever you can to get through the whole thing without losing your veggie burger but I struggle with the terms. Run a marathon or walk a marathon.
I guess it is like a getting a degree in college. No one actually asks you if it took you four years or ten years. They just see the degree and know that you made it through. Maybe it is the same way with marathon medals.
I don't know, I just don't know...