I have experienced excitement and unpredictability throughout my journey to this point. I grew up in a single-parent household where my mother raised me alongside my little brother. I firmly believe that this upbringing instilled in me the desire to develop the skills necessary to navigate life. I have always prioritized the desire to make my own decisions and choose the path I believe will lead to success. Observing my mother work two jobs to provide for us showed me the meaning of hard work to support one’s family and helped shape my work ethic and determination.
Our household maintained a strong focus on goals and critical thinking because second chances were not guaranteed. However, I do not always make the correct choices, no matter how deliberate I am in planning. Still, I strongly advocate for extreme ownership because I believe in learning from my mistakes. We are also passionate about equality. It was never a point of emphasis because equality was instilled at an early age. However, when a schoolmate expressed their opinion about someone’s beliefs, I found it challenging to comprehend. My fascination with people stems from their personalities rather than their beliefs.
At this point in my life, I have served in the military for over 18 years, witnessing remarkable places and meeting fascinating individuals. I can attribute my success to the foundational skills I developed in my youth. Joining the military was not a conscious decision, but after making some poor choices, my grandfather recommended it to help me get back on track. My grandfather, a migrant from Mexico who achieved success through hard work and determination, was grateful to be an American citizen. I had no reservations when he suggested that I join the military to serve a greater cause.
Reflecting on my life, I can honestly say that I have been fortunate enough to attract people who desire to promote positivity. A defining moment for me occurred when I had the opportunity to instruct recruits. My role was to assist them in developing the skills they needed to excel in their military occupational specialty, commonly known as their job. What I didn’t realize was the amount of time I would spend with these new soldiers and how my military experience would help them learn their job and provide guidance during an emotionally stressful period in their lives. The feedback from these students enlightened me to the significance of social interaction and solidified my passion for helping people.
The military community presents challenging situations where leaders expect service members to perform optimally with minimal assistance. Fortunately, there is more emphasis on caring for service members, but we still fall short due to limited resources. Listening to retired military members discuss their struggles and learning from the resiliency skills I have acquired in Alaska, has further fueled my desire to provide a service to assist our community. I aspire to work in programs such as behavioral health or military and family life counseling to support service members when needed. Fortunately, these programs are becoming more widely accepted due to their success rates, giving me hope that we will continue to invest in the well-being of our future.
Olivia Taylor
Hello Joshua, endowing your story giving merit to your mother is proof that she was a beautiful figure and example in your life. From what I have observed in life, being a mother is something that we learn and practice every single day. It is an on-going lesson. Being aware of how patient, understanding and supportive your mother is and the difficulties of being a single parent is a beautiful thing. Its amazing that she worked two jobs and was able to offer healthy patterns and heedfulness that is now reflected in you.
Thank You for furnishing your life and story with an emphasis on caring for service members, we need this reminder. It is so mindful of you to have dedicated so much time to helping others learn the skill sets needed for self-advocating and stability; having numberless years’ experience seems your perfect for the job!
Joshua Escobedo
Hello Olivia,
I appreciate your kind words. I want to be open about the fact that these life lessons came with their share of challenges. I’ve been known to be a bit stubborn or headstrong, but I’ve realized over the years that I tend to remember and learn more from the difficult lessons. Fortunately, with time, I’ve become wiser and better at recognizing the signs, which has helped me avoid some of those tough lessons.
Abbigale Wheeler
Hey Joshua, I am glad to hear you are planning on going into social work to support service members and veterans. I think in a lot of cases, support is only available for active military members and veterans are often left behind. It is great to see that there are still promising individuals entering this field of work. I especially think you will make an excellent fit for this line of work as you will likely have a lot of the same experiences as those who you are helping.
Joshua Escobedo
Hi Abbigale,
Thank you for your encouraging words. I completely agree with your perspective. Military life is filled with stress and physical demands, so it’s only natural that prioritizing services to counteract these adverse effects is essential. I believe my military experience allows me to empathize with those I may have the privilege of assisting. Unfortunately, after talking to some of my friends who’ve transitioned out of the military, I’ve learned that the available services for veterans are often less than ideal.
Myah Sundby
Good day, Joshua
I loved the phrase “Our household maintained a strong focus on goals and critical thinking because second chances were not guaranteed.” That is a skill I had not learned in my childhood, and I’ve had to develop on my own. I appreciate your way of thinking and mentioning the area you would like to pursue in social work. My husband and I are in the military, and based on our experiences and others, I am also interested in helping service members. I agree that there is a slight progression there, giving me hope. Your writing is inspiring; thank you for sharing.
Joshua Escobedo
Hello Myah,
That’s fantastic to hear! I’m sure you and your husband can relate to the challenge of seeing friends and fellow service members struggle when there are ways to help. In the past, I believed that the stigma of seeking these resources prevented people from getting the help they needed. However, I now think that the lack of availability and the quality of the services play a more significant role. We have a counselor in my unit who has caught my attention for the past two years. While you might occasionally encounter a counselor, usually after a safety incident, the interaction is limited. My unit’s counselor stands out by visiting every soldier in their workplace regularly and displays true passion for their job. While I appreciate all the services counselors provide, I can genuinely say that I’ve never been as excited as when this counselor comes into my office and brightens my day with a big smile. This person is also married to a service member, and I have seen them use that to highlight some areas of concern. I hope this fuels your determination because you possess military knowledge that most do not, which can be the key to making a significant difference.