Spirit So'oga

Finally, my first day out of the Army after almost 9 years of serving as an Active Duty Soldier. In other words, 2 contracts and 3 extensions, in military jargon. I had a thought about joining the Army in high school. I never really believed I could do something fun and make money in the "real world". I never thought I could settle for doing just 1 thing in life, so I knew my path in this life would be tough because it's a journey to find out who you really want to be here on Earth and what to do. One thing I knew I wanted to do was run around and play sports for fun with my kids when I get older.

All I ever wanted to be was a Mother. Throughout high school and briefly in college, I was in a serious relationship with my boyfriend (at the time). All I ever wanted was to be near him, if I wasn't right next to him. Exactly why I was so heartbroken when we broke up. I was heartbroken, bad! First serious relationship. I knew, by the way I was heartbroken, how much I wanted to give someone the love I would want ... I for sure wanted to be a Mother. I want to pour my love into someone who will appreciate it unconditionally. Specifically, to be a "Boy Mom" and to raise my boys to be Men, making sure they treat their Lady right. Crazy how my first heartbreak and relationship made me feel like I should be a Mom, funny thinking about how my brain worked at 17 years old.

One heartbreak and 5 years after high school, I've been working my first post-college job and in a whole new relationship, about to give birth to my first son! The next year, my second son was born. I worked a government job as a daycare provider on a military post. I cared for infants and pre-toddlers. I got to be with my boys at the same daycare where I worked, and I felt so blessed because not many mothers get that opportunity to have their kids at their workplace. I spent my lunch breaks with my babies since they were infants. I stayed at my job for another 3 years before deciding to join the Army. When I joined the Army in 2017 as an active duty soldier, I was already a mom of 2 boys under the age of 4 years old, and my youngest was still breastfeeding. I joined when my kids were young. My job changed from being with them all the time to being away most days. Being on active duty, you already know the cons that come with the contract ... having to move. In 2021, I finally have orders, and it's finally time for me to experience my first PCS move. I was blessed to have my home, Hawai'i, as my first duty station. My husband could not come with me. He had things going on that just didn't align with the timing of the PCS move. That broke me ... I go thinking that within a year I'll be with my family, especially my boys. One year turned into two years, and now I have been away from my boys for 5 years!

In 2026, I will post more consistently on TUMBLR.

I really miss the blogging and daily life posts that I used to do. I love coming back to TUMBLR and looking back at my life. I miss writing down every detail of a day, or of the months or years I was away. Being able to come back to a place where I can share pictures, videos, or paragraphs ... that makes me happy. I feel like I should actively share parts of me here. A little memoir...