Grant High School senior Gus Lowthian knew he couldn’t just take a job where he sits in an office after he graduates. So the 18-year-old will join the U.S. Marines, locking at least four years of his life into the military. He’s excited for the chance to leave high school, to travel and to challenge himself in a different way.

Joining the military is going to be a big commitment. Did you always know you wanted to do something like this?

I didn’t know I wanted to join the military but I always kind of wanted to do something active where I’m accomplishing things. I didn’t really set on the military until junior year.

What inspired you to sign up?

Youth Corps. You’re out there with like 10 guys camping out and doing a lot of hard work and accomplishing something with a team. You work on a project and then you put all of this hard work into it and it’s cool to see it come to fruition. We built trails and maintained trails in Washington. Our biggest project was we built this huge rock staircase in the John Day Fossil Beds out on a horse trail. That was pretty cool.

What is it about boot camp that you are looking forward to?

Every part of it, actually. Everybody says it sucks but that’s kind of the appeal. I wouldn’t want to go if it wasn’t a challenge. If it was easy, it wouldn’t be enjoyable. It’s fun to kind of test your limits and see how far you can push yourself. It’s a challenge to become one of the best. So if I get through it then I’m one of the best. That’s a pretty big incentive.

Why do you feel the need to challenge yourself?

If you’re not doing something to challenge yourself, get better at something or actually accomplish something, then you’re kind of wasting your time. You’re just kind of wasting life if you’re not doing anything. It’s more fun, too. I would rather go fight fires or be a Marine and go do epic stuff then just sit in an office doing the same thing everyday.

Is there anything you’re afraid of?

Obviously, I don’t want to get shot. We all die, and if we die before we get old then I would prefer to die in the military than by some drunk driving accident. I wouldn’t be too upset.

What does your mom think about her oldest son potentially going into a war zone?

She was kind of against it at first. Both my parents were. But they realized that I want to do it and I’ll enjoy it so they respected that decision. Their decision was like: ‘We will support you and do whatever we can to help you get there, but you just have to promise to get everything out of it that you can.’

How do you think life at home will change without you there? What will it be like for your parents and younger brother?

I think they will miss me but I’m not worried about them. They can focus on my brother instead of having to worry about me. I do feel like he kind of gets lost in the mix.

What new perspectives do you hope to gain from traveling abroad if you get the chance?

It will just be cool to see how other people live and work. I talked to a lot of people that have come back from boot camp and a lot of them have kind of a downward view of normal civilians. In the Marines, you learn to work as a team to have somebody’s back and you’re a community. Then you come back to civilian life and everybody doesn’t care about one another at all. I don’t really have that view now but it will be interesting to see how I see things after boot camp.

Do you think you will come back a different person?

Most definitely, it changes you. I think I will be like me but a better me. Marines have their whole core values – honor, courage, commitment – and all their leadership traits. The job at boot camp is to instill those values in you. ♦

Check out the rest of our Time With interviews for more brief snapshots of Grant community members.