HOOAH!

Symptoms of a Military Brat - Wiki -

Accordingly, this group is shaped by frequent moves, absence of a parent, authoritarian family dynamics, strong patriarchal authority, threat of parental loss in war, and a militarized family unit. While non-military families share many of these same attributes, military culture is unique due to the tightly knit communities that perceive these traits as normal. Although the children did not choose to belong to it, military culture can have a long-term impact on the children. As adults, military brats can share many of the same positive and negative traits developed from their mobile childhoods. Having had the opportunity to live around the world, military brats can have a breadth of experiences unmatched by most teenagers. Some can struggle to develop and maintain deep, lasting relationships, and can feel like outsiders to U.S. civilian culture. Their transitory lifestyle can hinder potential for constructing concrete relationships with people and developing emotional attachments to specific places, which may later develop into psychologically developmental disorders.

I don't think all of those symptoms apply to me, but I have been (albeit jokingly...sometimes jokingly, that is) labeled a "Military Brat" nonetheless. Yesterday I spent a great deal of time reminiscing and pondering my experiences in a military lifestyle, and how it shaped my life more than I perceived. My thoughts are rather jumbled, but I'm going to try and write of those that specifically jump out at me. I think I'll try and make each a specific post, otherwise this may get too long.