Sonia Marsh - Gutsy Living

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Memorial Day and what it means to me

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My son during parent weekend at New Mexico Military Institute

Memorial Day has taken on a whole new meaning in my life. Let me explain. Like many Americans, I believed it was a holiday signifying the start of summer barbecues, beach days and a vacation on the horizon.

But now that my seventeen-year-old son enlisted and started a nine week Army Basic training program, I have developed a new appreciation for what young men and women go through, and what other service men and women have done for us, and continue to do for our country and our world.

I’m embarrassed to admit that I have often taken our freedom for granted. If only we lived in a peaceful world where every single person on our planet could fall asleep without the fear of being killed, raped, and had a  safe place to live.

For the next nine weeks, my 17-year-old son, like all the other soldiers during Basic training will learn the following Seven Army Values:

* Loyalty
* Duty
* Respect
* Selfless Service
* Honor
* Integrity
* Personal Courage

“These values form the basis of your soldier character and they sustain a soldier in times of both peace and conflict.”

His daily training schedule will be the following:

Army Boot Camp 5 a.m. – Wake up
5:30 a.m. – Physical Training
6:30 a.m. – Breakfast
8:30 a.m. – Training
Noon – Lunch
1 p.m. – Training
5 p.m. – Dinner
6 p.m. – Drill Sergeant Time
8:30 p.m. – Personal Time
9:30 p.m. – Lights Out

And finally, let’s not forget the gas chamber training:

As explained on the basic training website: “The gas chamber is probably the most mentally challenging exercise you will have to overcome at basic training. Recruits have to breathe Ortho-chlorbenzylidenedimalonitrile. Wow, that sounds scary. Actually, it is just the active substance of CS gas. You might recognize the name better as the common riot control formula called tear gas. Now, the bad news is yes, you will have to go into an isolated room and breathe this gas in your lungs and it does sting a little bit. The good news is as soon as you walk outside, the exercise is over.”

For those of you who have fought for our freedom, and for those families who have suffered the loss of a loved one, please forgive my lack of understanding. I finally grasp the sacrifice that your son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife, lover, friend, cousin, uncle, aunt, or other relative has gone through. No words can express the gratitude that I now feel.

"Mom, I’m a soldier now"

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I’m at the playground with my four-year-old son. He’s swinging and sliding down the new equipment in our local park. He whizzes past me, getting rid of all the energy he’s stored in his small body from a day of pre-school rules.

He picks up a small stick, and pretends he’s fighting the bad guys. I’ve seen boys all over the world play this game. “Mom, look at me, I’m a soldier,” he says.

My sixteen-year-old son at NMMI New Mexico Military Institute

Yesterday, my cell phone rang and I heard these words again, only this time, his voice was deep.
“Mom, I’m a soldier now,” he said with such pride.
“Congratulations,” was all I could say at that moment. He had a plane to catch and I would see him later that evening at the airport.
What went through my mind was a mixture of emotions: fear, pride, love, loss, sadness and happiness.
My seventeen-year-old son enlisted with the National Guard. He wanted this more than anything.
This summer he will attend a nine week training course before returning to high school to finish his senior year. After that, he plans to attend college and continue training during those years.

When I gave birth and held him in my arms, it never occurred to me that one day he would become a soldier. I’m sure it’s different for families who have grown up in the military, but for me, this is new, and I shall have to learn to put my fears aside.

Perhaps I just need to be a Gutsy mom, and stop worrying.

How about you? Do you think about what your children will become when they grow up? If they already are adults, did they end up becoming who you thought they would?

A Modern Thanksgiving

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 My youngest son Jordan, sixteen, returning from
There are many ways to express gratitude on Thanksgiving Day, however, what caught my eye, was Seth Godin’s definition of a Modern Thanksgiving.
“A modern Thanksgiving would celebrate two things:
  • The people in our lives who give us the support and love we need to make a difference, and…
  • The opportunity to build something bigger than ourselves, something worth contributing. The ability to make connections, to lend a hand, to invent and create.”
Peace Corps volunteers, Harvey and Patty Gagnon, are in their sixties and doing what Seth Godin said; they are building something bigger than themselves.
You’ll love what Harvey says at the end, “Forget the golf game, there’s always time for that when you’re 92.”

HAPPY MODERN THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY FRIENDS AND NEW CONNECTIONS.

LOVE FROM SONIA.

Stepping back helps you see the obvious.

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Parents’ Weekend at NMMI (New Mexico Military Institute)
 A short visit to congratulate my sixteen-year-old son for doing so well and loving his new school.
HELLO EVERYONE.


How are you? It’s been a while hasn’t it?

Thank you for your support, your wonderful comments, and understanding my need to finish my revisions.

I’ve revised my entire manuscript based on the premise, crafting the story with conflicts and obstacles, leading up to the crisis our family faced and finally the resolution. Thanks to my talented editor, I’ve been able to weed out the unnecessary parts and transform my memoir into a cohesive story.


My editor, (I shall give you her name and link later, as she’s almost completed a brand new website) now has the task of reviewing my 311 page, 82.500 word count, starting on October 11th. This allows me to read the entire manuscript out loud and probably do some last minute editing. Is a writer ever done? I thought of recording it onto my ipod, but need to Google search how to do that first. Anyone know?


It’s been 30 days of butt-flattening exercises, (sitting still in a chair.)
I did get a break on September 16-20th, when I flew to Albuquerque, NM, rented a Kia Rio, which almost flew off the road into a neighboring sheep pasture, and landed in Roswell, 170 miles down a lonely road.
I am so proud of my son and all the other cadets, the teachers, and the structure of the school. I attended Jordan’s classes and even learned a few words in Arabic, one of his new subjects.

After a month of non-blogging and no-commenting, I feel rejuvenated. Now don’t get me wrong, of course I’ve missed you, however, my inbox was inundated with blogs I subscribe to like Copyblogger.com, Problogger.com, and you know what?


I felt sad for people who are consumed with their blogs 100% of the time. Now I’m sure there are many who would disagree, including those amazing professional bloggers I mentioned above. But in a way, I thought of the old days, where we could do other things with our lives.


Let me share something with you. When I was forced to take a break for a month, I no longer woke up
at 2 a.m., rushed to my notepad in the bathroom, closed the door, so the light wouldn’t wake up my husband, and wrote down a topic that came to mind. No, instead, I rushed to my computer and wrote down a change I came up with on my manuscript. HAHA. I guess I shall always wake up and write, no matter what project I’m working on. Those sleep through the night, nights are gone forever.

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