People join the military for different reasons. One teenager was still trying to decide if she should enlist. However, her sibling saw that she had left a tab on the family computer. The siblings then informed their parents, and they refused to grant her permission to enlist. She disappeared soon afterward, and her family is now unsure where she is.
Is it worth signing up for the military? For most people, the answer to this question is simple—the opportunity to serve your country and the added benefit of providing for your family is too good to pass up. Some see it as a way of escaping and building a new lifestyle.
However, it’s not always that straightforward. Parents might tell their children not to enlist due to the dangers associated with military service. Some parents will even forbid their children to enlist. There are still people out there who would like to enlist, even if that means going against their parents. One Redditor’s sibling did just that.
Teenage Girl Leaves Everything behind to Join the Military
On one fateful day, Reddit user Sour-Cafe5230 noticed that their sister planned on joining the military after she graduated high school. Redditor noticed that her sister had accidentally left tabs open in the family computer and immediately alerted the parents. The parents were not in favor of the idea and thought they had dissuaded the daughter from joining the military. However, she had other ideas.
The night the teenager turned 18, she disappeared. After taking extra credit to get her high school diploma, she was already out of town. Redditor’s brother secretly completed boot camp, and she ended up joining the coast guard. The family then hired a “PI” to help them find her, but it turned out that the coast guard had sent her somewhere and would not disclose her location to her family. The Redditor also said,
“The only thing we got is an official let from a coast guard lawyer telling me to back off. He was not pleasant to deal with. Besides him, some of my friends also say I was on the wrong side, not my sister, for disappearing on my parents. They are still upset.”
Did the OP Share the Full Story?
Many top comments believed that the original poster had left out important pieces of information. The post did not explain why a teenage girl would leave her family and go missing if she had trouble at home. Reddit user i_declareathumbwar commented,
“There is a lot more to this story you are not telling us. This sort of thing took years to plan to graduate high school early, enlist, get out of the state and get away from you guys. People who have a nice home and love their families don’t spend years planning how to disappear on the night they turn 18.”
The Reddit community also felt that the coast guard hired a lawyer to protect the sister from her family. Most felt she was gone because she didn’t want her family to find her. Reddit user EvocativeEnigma added,
“Firstly, this sounds like you’re the golden child. If your parents have YOU spying on your sister and if she was trying to get out of the house and away from people she no longer wanted in her life, then yeah… Your parents suck too, and I hope your sister is happy and can get on her feet without people who want to control and moderate her every move. Good for her for making a plan and getting out. She doesn’t want to be found, and the lawyers are there to protect her. You all should accept that and leave her alone.”
Father Tells Son to Join the Military or Move Out
This story is a little different from the previous one. Reddit user Bouldering_shared his story about trying to get his son to sign up for the military. Redditor Bouldering_ thought that his son needed a push to get into the military because he was just 19 and didn’t want to go to college or learn a career.
The father then decided to give his son an ultimatum. His son, then 13, was asked to decide between moving out and looking for a new place to live or joining the military. The father was adamant that he wouldn’t raise a “freeloader” and told his son he needed to decide within a month. The Redditor then added,
“I will consider giving him up to 2 years while paying me to rent before ultimately making him decide if he wants to move out, go to school, or join the military.”
Could Parents Force Their Children to Join the Military?
Many Redditors disagreed with Bouldering_s parenting methods. They felt that he was forcing his son into a “potentially life-threatening” situation by pushing him to enlist. Redditors felt that the OP was unreasonable in forcing his son to choose between moving out or enlisting.
Other Redditors pointed out that the son was still a teenager. The OP and the OP agreed that most people don’t know what they want at this age. So expecting him to know everything was unrealistic. Instead, they demanded that he pay his son rent. He eventually agreed, which allowed Bouldering_ to change his mind about the military option.
It’s often because their relationship is unstable that children rebel against their parents’ wishes. These stories can be used to show us that parents must establish a strong relationship with their children early in life. What did you think of the Redditors’ stories and advice? What advice would either of you give them? We’d love to hear from you!