When I was a young cadet at West Point ,
my plan was to serve for five years in
the army and then get out and go to law
school . But I quickly learned that I
love being a soldier and I loved
serving my country service means
focusing on something bigger than
yourself and giving back to your
community , giving back to your country .
It's what makes our country great and
we need the talent of , of everyone in
the community , the young and old .
So instead of spending five years in
uniform , I spent 41
and I'm grateful that I can continue to
serve now as a Secretary of Defense .
And every day , I'm amazed at what our
team can achieve to defend our
country , to advance the cause of
freedom and to make the world
safer for future generations .