What was your most unexpected life event or transition?

Thanks for sharing.

I was involuntarily inducted (drafted) during my 1st year (1968) of law school. I was approaching half-way through my 1L year when I got drafted. Fortunately, UC Hastings Law kept my enrollment open for four years and I went from active duty to the infantry in the CA ARNG and returned to law school. I wondered if my induction timing had anything to do with my 1968 graduation from CAL (UC @ Berkeley, CA)SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
Judge (ret), Nevada - J.D., M.J.S.

9/11/2001. Changed my life forever and I am still dealing with the fallout. I left a wife and THREE boys, including a newborn, on the first of three wartime deployments. One to Gitmo in 2002, one to Ft. Dix, NJ, in 2003, and then a 14 month gig to Iraq for OIF III, 2004-2005. Job/career change, resentful older boy, federal lawsuit against former employer, role confusion with my wife. Today, we have five wonderful children, ages 26-13, my wife and I are both retired, focusing on the kids, her folks, who are elderly and need daily care, the house (Honey-Do lists on steroids!), but also some daily time just for us. Cruising right along! Thanks for the question! Hooah!

My two events were, being the only person in the Navy who passed the Senior Chief's exam and did not get advanced. The second was being asked to retire from the Navy because I was not advancing in Rate. The first was the year that Affirmative Action in the Military began in 1975. I was the only one who took the exam and passed it but the man who was advanced, could not pass the exam because he had not taken it and had not worked as a Lithographer for more than 15 years. The second was due to the Navy. I made Chief in 1972. They had no billet for either Senior or Master Chief until the single billet in 1975 for Affirmative Action. When that man was advanced, once again without a test in 1978, I assumed I would get advanced. NO! I was told the billet was discontinued. When the Affirmative Action Master Chief finally retired in 1981 they eliminated that billet as well. So, without a single billet for Advancement, how was I to get advanced in Rate? They did not care. So, instead of serving 30 years, I served 28 years and 9 months.