I have been busy since my last post.  In early February I had my Officer Candidate School (OCS) board and was accepted into the OCS program for the Hawaii National Guard.  Later that month I began Zero Phase of OCS.  Zero Phase is the Hawaii National Guard's preparatory phase for Phasese the I-III of OCS on the mainland.  Hawaii's reputation is quite high among the National Guard, country wide.  To date, it has had a 100% graduation rate of Officer Candidates (OCs) sent to the mainland for OCS.  Of those sent, 70% graduate in the top 30% of the class.

I am honored to have been selected and hope that I will be qualified enough to move on to Phase I-III. 

I am the third month of Zero Phase here in Hawaii.  I am the Platoon Leader (PL) for this month.  The problem with this position is that scrutiny that TAC Officers give you.  The assignments given are usually impossible to complete in the time allotted and for newbies to the Army, this gets frustrating.  The problem is also the positive.  These tasks and this scrutiny serve to push us as OCs to make better and better decisions under duress.

Our TAC Officers are always pushing us to get fitter and fitter (and in my case less "muscle-bound") so that we will have better presence of mind under situations of physical and mental stress.  Upon my arrival to OCS they told me that I needed to loose 50lbs.  I do have some fat to burn, that is for sure, but it will also require that I lose some of my muscle mass.  To do so, I had to change my workout routines so that I build my endurance rather than my size.  Since the time they instructed me to lose the weight, I have lost 10 lbs.  Only 40 lbs to go.  They did tell me that they thought i would lose a lot during OCS.  Let's hope they are correct.

As for the title of this post, I was a PFC when I joined OCS.  Upon joining, I became an OC which has the pay grade of E6, which is the equivalent of a Staff Sergeant (SSG).  To clarify, I was not promoted to the rank of a SSG.  I have too much respect for the SGTs and SSGs that have trained me, supported me, and helped me get where I am to pretend that I have the training or experience that they have.  If not for their support and examples, I would not be here. My hope is that I can excel as an officer and that my excellence will be a reflection of their impact on my life.

Go Army!