I was 12 years old and I had just come to the United States from Indonesia with my mom, a single parent, and my younger brother. My world was cartoons and video games where the good guys fight the bad guys — but this evil was real. I was grateful to America for the opportunity it offered us, and I felt so scared, so powerless, and so sad about the devastation in my new home. I hoped that one day I would be able to join the military to protect the United States.