"'These marbles are like your future, mostly clear, but there is no way to know what's on the other side,'" McCarter details, "'Stay safe, I expect to get these marbles back from each and every one you at the end of this deployment and whatever you do, don't lose your marbles!'"Īfter a devastating loss, the two came up with a plan. "He walked to each of us, and put a single glass marble in our hand," said McCarter, "Carrie and I shared confused glances." In one part, she details a unique shared experience at the hands of their platoon sergeant. It's eight pages of memories with French. "With blonde hair, angel kiss freckles, and soft brown eyes accompanied by a pink shirt, we could not have been more opposite," McCarter read, "She asked if I was heading to Texas and after we realized we were in the same boat, we became attached at the hip." Another young Idahoan she met at renegade camp.
Her story is called 'Marbles', and it details more than just her experience, but her time with Carrie French. "I always wished he had written down all his stories, he had amazing stories from India, and I always wished he written them down, so I decided, I'd write down," said McCarter. She followed in the footsteps of her grandfather, who also served. "I missed my own graduation because I went to advanced individual training," said McCarter. Marisa McCarter joined the Idaho Army National Guard at just 17 years old, attending boot camp, before her senior year of high school.