Proud to be American

To this day I remember the good and bad of my time during my time serving my country. As a 17-year-old entering the military I was a naive youngster. At 18 years old thrown into combat, I developed from a naive youngster to a man very quickly. We all grew up very quickly and leaned on each other doing our jobs to survive. Volunteer/draftee mattered not; race/religion mattered not. We were a band of brothers living/fighting/dying together. The mutual respect we had for each other outweighed the disrespect we received on our return from the war zone. I contribute my personal/moral convictions then and today to my time spent in the military. If asked again I would not change a minute of my life in the military for it served as a compass to how I have lived my life. I say these things even after spending years of unknowingly dealing with PTS. Respect for life and liberty is one major fact I learned from my time in the military. God bless those today who volunteer to serve our great nation.