Becoming a Superhero: Based on a True Story

Description

Oliver was a lost child. Even though he had a good background, he managed to screw up his life. He was a military brat. His father served 24 years in the US Navy. His mom was loving and kind, but very strict. Maybe too much discipline was too much for him?He also had a good education. He was taught in DoDDs (Department of Defense Dependents Schools), similar to private schools, in Portugal and Panama. He even earned a bachelor's degree in Business Management from the renown San Diego State University. However, after all that, it was all downhill.Oliver was a nerd. And he was determined to become a superhero to prove to all the bullies wrong. He worked out hard, even up to five hours a day. He told his psychologist that the reason why he worked out so hard was so he could become a triathlete. However, his real goal was to become a superhero.Unfortunately, Oliver took a wrong path in life. He got mixed up in women, money, and gambling. He had a theory: To think like a criminal, you must act like a criminal.See the adventures of our young superhero as he turns his life around....Chapter 1: BackgroundI was born in the summer of 1974, in a small town near New Orleans, Louisiana. I had big ears, big eyes and a flat nose. I was a scrawny little boy. I’m sure if I was born from Spartan parents, I would’ve easily been thrown off a cliff, as I would’ve been denounced unfit enough to be a Spartan. Luckily, my parents decided to keep me.My parents bestowed upon me the name, “Oliver.” Like Oliver Twist? Yes. However, my name didn’t come from a play. It came from a movie called Love Story. It was my parent’s favorite movie back in 1974, and starred Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw. In this movie, Ryan O’Neal played a character named Oliver. Oliver was an intelligent and handsome guy. Unfortunately, my story is a little different.My dad was a cook or MS (Mess Specialist) in the US Navy. He was an enlisted man, not an officer. He always told me, “If you ever join the military, then become an officer. Don’t be enlisted like me.” He was rather intelligent. However, the only job he could get back then was a cook.You see, in 1947, the US had a huge base called Subic Bay in the Philippines. The US signed a Status of Forces agreement which required the United States to hire Filipinos. Out of the thousands of Filipinos who took the test, my dad was one of the very few who passed it and was recruited into the US Navy. Of course, the only jobs the US allowed the Filipinos to take were cooks. That’s why you will see a lot of old Filipino cooks in the Navy.My dad had a hard life in the Philippines. He used to tell me every day how lucky I was to be born in America. He used to tell me how he collected coins in the ditches and cans on the street to support his family. He told me several times that if he hadn’t passed that test, I would’ve been collecting cans too.I knew I was very fortunate. However, I used to joke around with him all the time saying, “Did it snow in the Philippines too?”He used to get mad at me all the time for saying that. He would always say that it was no laughing matter. Although I apologized many times, I still didn’t believe he walked ten miles to school and back…barefoot! All joking aside, I knew he had a hard life in the Philippines. With that being said, I just wanted to say that I am truly proud to be an American. I couldn’t imagine my life otherwise…much less collecting cans in the ditches.However, although I am an American, I am also known as a Second Generation Filipino, meaning my parents were born in the Philippines and I was born here, in the US. Luckily I was born here, in the US, because if I was born in the Philippines, I would’ve been considered very poor. And even though I’m Filipino…I don’t speak the “Tagalog” language.