Military Intelligence

In the midst of everything going on in our lives, our second son has been attending the University of Arkansas and has been part of the Air Force ROTC program.  He turned down a rather hefty band scholarship, that he was awarded due to his incredible saxophone skills, in order to pursue a scholarship with the AFROTC.  He also changed his major from music composition to computer engineering, hoping this would also help him obtain the scholarship and better serve his dream of serving as an officer in the US Air Force.

In January, Eric found out that he was approved for the scholarship.  He was so excited, and I was so happy for him.  Of course, he had to go through the routine physical and background check.  No problem, right?

Wrong.

When Eric was young, he would get a rash on the inside of his elbows and knees.  It usually occurred when it was hot outside.  As any good mother would do, I took him to the doctor.  It was treated and cleared up quickly.  It recurred a couple of time, so we'd treat it again, and it would go away again.  After age 11, he has had no recurrences at all.

Because of this history, Eric was denied the scholarship and was told that he was not approved for military service.  He applied for a waiver, which was also denied.

Today, his commanding officer told him it was over.  He was not going to be able to pursue his dream of serving his country in the military.

I am upset, of course, because it always hurts to see your child's dreams taken away.  I'm also upset because of just how stupid this is.  They give fully automatic weapons to young men and women with severe mental health diagnoses and ship them off to other countries.  They put lots of men and women in harms way every single day...I mean, lets get real:  the threat of someone shooting off a limb seems a little more serious than the threat of a rash.

But here's the cool part.  When I asked Eric how he was doing, he said he was okay.  The summer of 2013 had been slated for his basic training.  Now that he knows next summer is free, he plans to be an intern in Honduras with Mercy International.  In his disappointment, he turned to Christ and to service.
I couldn't be more proud and pleased if he was a four star general.

So, even though I think the military pulled a seriously bone-headed move by denying themselves an amazing young leader, I know God has a perfect plan for him, and I'm so excited to watch it unfold.