So my plans last week got changed, as I got drafted to help at the range for our current academy, since they were short on instructors. Pretty much a typical group, some good, some bad - the same things we observe most every time. I did watch some interesting dynamics though...
The first recruit in question was a young girl who folded under the least bit of pressure at any point. Tears and all. Had no real competence or drive to do more than the minimums, and more important, no confidence in herself or real character to show. The kind who every person there was discussing how soon she would quit, pretty much knowing she didn't have what it takes to finish the Academy, much less do the job.
The other one was a little wisp of a girl. Watching her throughout the week she had some first-time shooter problems, but asked good questions & more importantly, she actually listened to what we would tell her. Prior Navy, with a college degree as well, but that isn't the important part. What was important came out in her character on Wednesday evening when we started pushing them a bit more. I was watching from the side as she shot, and I could literally see tears running down her face as she winced between a few of the drills. But, every time I asked her about it, she swore nothing was wrong and kept on going. This went on the rest of the day and she never once backed down, or tried to get out of any of the drills. When we finally finished I got her to the side with the lead instructor and we got the story - she'd played rugby in school, had broken some bones in her wrist & had pins in them which were hurting when she shot from certain positions. But she was absolutely adamant that it wasn't a big deal & she was able to continue. So, we gave her some tips to help with things, and made sure that she knew that if it got too bad she was to let us know - it wouldn't be a sign of failure or lack of ability.
I can tell you, just from watching this young lady this week - she will never, ever quit on us. She may not be the biggest or strongest recruit in that class, but she has more heart than I've seen in a majority of the other men and women. You can teach skills, you can teach concepts - but you cannot teach character. She's one I really hope sticks around, because she's going to be a great asset to the department.
