Do you miss not being a soldier anymore ?

Question

I left a answer on a question and something Felix below me wrote made me think, I left the Army a while ago but I miss it everyday, yet when I was in I got so Issed off with it....
I drive now for a living I'm my own boss I ern good money a lot of my mates with who I served have now left and are doing outdoor courses and security in Iraq and stuff, but they ask me to do it but I made the break I try to keep away from that but everytime I drive past a wood or farm or fields I looking distance ranging working out best position to snipe or set up op's did I never switch off or does training keep your brain running for years.
The main thing I really miss is Pistol shooting I was a Marksman and your lucky if you can shoot a spudgun legally in the UK nowadays......

Rememberance Sunday is the worse that just makes you so Issed of seeing your old muckers...But Seen it Done it Bought the T-shirt wouldn't change a thing....
I amProud that I served for Q+C...Forever a Soldier.

Felix Mate you reminded me don't be Sorry....Sad though ain't it how I long for a wood, rain, a basha and the old days...You reminded me of good times the Idiot who posted the Bloodshed question reminded me of not so good times but hopefully he might read my answer and realise life aint not xbox game...Good Luck and Good Times Mate.

Answer 1

An Army Of One Your Always A Soldier

Answer 2

I've never been in the military but as a wife, daughter, sister and daughter in law of one & growing up practically at the VFW & volunteering at the VA hospital I can confirm it's a definite yes.

True part of it is for nostalgia's sake as anything in the past. But where else can you be with so many different personalities & even people you don't like and yet know & trust they have your back and would risk their own for you, regardless. Over & over I've seen total strangers become instant friends on just the experience shared, though not together.

My own dad went to the VFW everyday, drinking or not just to be around other vets. It's alot more unique experience than most people realize, especially since the draft was stopped. It's hard to go back and be on your own, making your own choices, friends, etc. Not to say you don't want to. It's just hard. So there you have another thing in common with other vets. Dad woke all his life as the same time he did in the military, dressed his best even when at home, watched every old war movie, hung out at the VFW and the VA hospital & had a strong sense of right & wrong and sacrificing for the common good.

So maybe you just need to get around other vets who understand what you're going through. Of course you don't usually like it when enduring it but like all the memories in time only the good ones are really remembered.

Answer 3

Yes mate i miss it a lot, But luckily i am working with other soldiers here in Iraq. The money is better, im still carrying a gun, and the humour is still there. If i wasnt out here id be delivering mail or something and probably wondering why i ever left. On rememberance day i do suffer a bit, bt my mrs and kids are proud that i have quite a few decorations and i say to them they were earnt by the guys i was with and who are not here anymore. So yes, to answer your question, do i miss it, God yes..

Answer 4

I did 15 years and came out in '84. Found it hard at first but over the years I've calmed down a lot but I still miss it at times. The 25 years Falklands services brought back a lot of memories and of course Remembrance Sunday always causes the lump and watery eyes.

Worst for me now is that my son is doing his bit - Iraq/Afghanistan he's done both and is due to deploy again in the next few weeks.
My dad was RM Commando - he cried when I deployed. I do it now when my son goes - hey ho suppose I must be a softie at heart.

Would I go back - if I could take my son's place - too right.

Answer 5

ive been out for two years now, i tried to start my own buisness but it went under. so i ended up doing the one thing i always hated, stagging on. i was very lucky though as i met a fella who knows people who got me a job in manchester and now im a security manager.
i have to say leaving the army was the biggest mistake i made, the grass is very rarely greener on the other side which i found out to my own cost mentaly and physicallyand financially.
my advice dont let little things snow ball and sign off because i garantee you will miss it its like losing a family somethings just gone and you dont know or cant figure out what it is.
rememberance day is the one weekend a year i always have off regardless because its my day to remember it all and have a drink to everyone past present and future who are all willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for queen and country if they had too.

once a soldier always a soldier and i will always be a sapper.

Answer 6

After 10 years I still miss the army life,every now and then when I sit down and think,it always seems that I remember the good times only as someone remarked earlier, once a soldier, always a soldier.

Answer 7

No! It was bloody hard work sometimes. You've got to move on in life. I've still got my mates that were in with me, they're out now too. I still travel the world, but now sleep in a lovely hotel bed instead of a muddy hole in the ground. I see the younger, still serving, Marines, on leave, being envied while at play (in the pub or at a club etc) by all and sundry, but I know that, in a couple of days time, the poor sods are going to be up to their eyes in muck and bullets again, in some 'god-forsaken' corner of the world.
No, I don't miss being a soldier (Royal Marine). Mind you, if I was a former WRAC, WRAF or WREN, I'd miss being amongst them. What red blooded Royal Marine wouldn't?

Answer 8

Maybe you should apply to join the Chelsea Pensioners... like my Dad...not sure if they'd let you have a pistol.. but you never know.. things are getting so bad according to Sir Richard Dannart, it may be as well to "keep your eye in mate".. Your services may be needed again in the near future.. at least with the Chelsea Pensioners you'll have a distinctive uniform and LOTS of RESPECT...

Answer 9

I was forced out for medical reasons, and I miss the Marine Corps every day. Stuff annoyed me, but I got a lot more out of it on the positive than on the negative. I hate the guy that hit my truck more than almost anyone else.

Answer 10

Years ago I used to work behind a train buffet, on a service where we carried a lot of active and ex servicemen. For every one who would say they'd left and were glad, we got at least 50 who'd say leaving was the worst thing they ever did.