"You're a 17 year old girl! You don't know what you're talking about!" is the typical response I get when I tell people I want to be a Marine. My family is constantly bombarding me with "what if's?" and "you're going to hate it" or "you're a girl, you're not strong enough." That last one really sets me off.

I know my family is only worried about me, but it's getting annoying. I'm the first to admit that I give off a somewhat romanticized version of the Marines, leading my family to think I'm naive. Nothing is further from the truth. I just hear so many negative things about the Marines that I get defensive and take as strong a stance as I feel I can, in their favor. It really pisses me off when people say stuff like, "they're called jar-heads because they put their brains in a jar and let other people tell them what to do."

Because my mom let me test out of high school, I promised her I would at least get my bachelors degree, which has led me to choose becoming an officer over enlisting. It's going to be hard for me to wait that long but a promise is a promise. I want to be a Marine more than anything in this world. As dramatic as this sounds, I want to be a Marine so bad it really does hurt sometimes.

I'd like to get the perspectives of female Marines, particularly officers, on what life is like as a Marine and anything that I could tell my family to maybe quell their worries. I've already told them to knock of the negative stuff because they won't be able to change my mind and they'll only solidify my already stubborn resolve.

Come on, 36 views and no responses?

I'm not an officer.

Well, it's not female perspective by any means, but I hope you don't mind if I put in my say.
Well, I just got back from a MEU and when I went home for leave, I found out that my cousin, just turning 13 in Nov, has decided the she wants to join the Marines and has been dealing with the hassle from the family. The first words I said to her were "I really should try talking you out of this, but I know it'd be useless."
Marines, people who join the Marines, are different. It's not the choice that we make for the college money, to see the world. It's more of a calling that goes a lot deeper than that. I was on recruiter's assistance with about ten other people. Not one of us talked to a recruiter before we decided to join.
As for dealing with your family, the first thing to say and impress upon them is that it's your life. The second, that you won't be in an infantry unit. Third, as an officer, you will, generally, be in safer areas in comparison to Marine Corps enlisted infantry. Fourth, by the time you're done with college and training, Iraq will have simmered down a whole lot more (and we'll be somewhere else instead). Fifth, impress upon them that it's your life.
Hope this helped.

- Mark

lol It doesn't really matter if you're an officer. I just need something more than my stubborn, smart-*** remarks to get my family to back off. I love my family but their double standard concerning the military is making me a little angry

Thanks for the input msaxonii

Male and females get that reaction to joining Marines. Who knows about Boot Camp but a Marine, so what most civies know is shait.

It is your life and ONLY YOU will live with it in your future. This is and won't be the first time that you'll get advice about anything that you'll do, so get use to it. You know your limits, talents, strengths and so on, so you CONTROL YOUR LIFE AND ONLY YOU!
Free advice is just that, FREE.

WELCOME AND HANG TOUGH!

If you do go in the Corps, that double standard will follow you the rest of your life. Don't worry, you'll get used to it! Like I posted elsewhere, a guy came up to me at work and said, "I just can't imagine you in uniform, marching around and yelling at people."
My mom didn't want me to go, but she knew that once I was set on doing something, there isn't anything that will stop me. My mom still brags on me to this day. I have two brothers and one sister and none of them went in the military. I'm the first one in my family, ever, as far as I know, to join the Marine Corps.
I would just tell your family that you appreciate their concerns, but you have decided to make your own decision. Hope that helps...even if it's coming from an enlisted Marine...

Gracias everyone for your input. I know it's my life and only I can make decisions for myself. I just happen to have a somewhat short temper and don't like it when my family won't accept that I've made up my mind and no one on this earth is going to change my mind about wanting to be a Marine. That's why I asked for anything that might get my family off my back

I have been able to bring my mom around to the idea and my brother and sister are actually the only ones in my family who have fully supported me since almost the beginning. My dad, however, is a different story, and since my stubborn resolve comes from him, there's no point in trying to get him to come around. He's just going to have to deal with it when it happens.

Thanks again!

P.S. hulinmer, if I hadn't promised my mom I would get a bachelors degree, I would enlist on April 4th (my 18th birthday)