Did I miss my chance?

[rgrokelley]

Whenever I talk of the time in combat I describe it as dancing between the raindrops, and being a Warrior King. Everything trivial and bullshit goes away and only life's most pressing concerns matter. Behind the lines was the same as ultimate form of freedom. You are the warrior kings. You choose who lives and dies and every day you see what you are made of.

In the movie "Hurt Locker" there is the scene of the main character, staring at the aisle of breakfast cereals. Hundreds to choose from. He just stares at it. I know what he is thinking. What a bunch of bullshit trying to figure out what breakfast cereal I need to get, when just a few months earlier I had to figure out how to defuse a big ass bomb.

Another scene that shows this, believe it or not, is in the last "Lord of the Rings" movie. If you didn't know it, The Lord of the Rings trilogy was begun in the trenches of WWI by J.R.R. Tolkien, and it is basically a fantasy version of WWI. In the end of the movie, all the Hobbits are sitting at a table, in the local tavern and everyone else is dancing around and happy. However they are all staring at each other. They are thinking, what the fuck do these people know. Not shit. They blissfully are unaware of the shit that goes on in their names, and they are happy to live a life without fear or danger. However, we few, happy few, know what it is like and there is no way we can describe it to someone who wasn't there.

[Jim]

Another scene that shows this, believe it or not, is in the last "Lord of the Rings" movie. If you didn't know it, The Lord of the Rings trilogy was begun in the trenches of WWI by J.R.R. Tolkien, and it is basically a fantasy version of WWI. In the end of the movie, all the Hobbits are sitting at a table, in the local tavern and everyone else is dancing around and happy. However they are all staring at each other. They are thinking, what the fuck do these people know. Not shit. They blissfully are unaware of the shit that goes on in their names, and they are happy to live a life without fear or danger. However, we few, happy few, know what it is like and there is no way we can describe it to someone who wasn't there.

Amen, brother.

[boscounderfoot]

The amount of good advice you've received here is astonishing! Listen to it all and heed the decades, no, better yet, the centuries of experience that took the time to help you and guide you in the right direction. From my own experiences, I can tell you that every time we were alerted, I would think to myself, "Is this the last time I'm going to see this place? Did I do everything in my power to make sure my men received the best training possible? And if this is the real thing, please God keep these men safe." And that happens a lot, there's nothing romantic about it!
All the advice that I could give you, you've already been gifted with. The only thing you need to be concentrating on is being the best soldier possible. You have a LONG way to go before I or any of these other Rangers and Veterans would allow you the privelege of leading any soldier into harms way, so stop worrying about the bullshit and focus on the immediate future.
Good luck in your endeavors and thank you for your willingness to serve this great nation.

RLTW