Does anyone else miss "the war?"

2013-12-24T23:36:01-05:00

I'm not sure I'm posing this question properly, and I'm also aware of the fact that there are still large numbers of people deployed(ing) to Afghanistan, and I don't want to take away from their trials and tribulations. But. I miss Iraq. I miss being deployed. I miss the non-garrison lifestyle.  Engaged actively everyday with a small group of trusted people. Maybe it's just me. Does anyone else feel this way or know what I'm getting at?

Response by SFC Grant Johnson made Dec 24 at 2013 11:42 PM

2013-12-24T23:42:31-05:00

Yes. Iraq feels like unfinished business to me. I wish I could go back, as bad as that sounds................. Trust me, you're not alone.

Response by SFC Grant Johnson made Dec 24 at 2013 11:49 PM

2013-12-24T23:49:51-05:00

I think that for me, it's unfinished business because I've known a lot of good people that have died there, plus all the time many of us spent there, and the money....... With the current deterioration of the place, it's starting to feel like it was all just a waste. Tragic really.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 25 at 2013 12:04 AM

2013-12-25T00:04:33-05:00

I was in Kuwait when they sealed the gates on the border [effectively symbolizing our primary withdrawal].

I couldn't help but wonder, "What was it for?"

Hopefully they can get that place right in our lifetimes.

If not, I get the feeling the Middle East as a whole is simply going to be the problem spot for us and our kids.

Response by PO2 Michael Marie made Dec 25 at 2013 5:16 PM

2013-12-25T17:16:35-05:00

Hands down, my deployment was the best part of my military career. People don't understand that when I say I'd do it again in a heartbeat, I truly mean it...I actually yearn for it in a way that I think would only make sense to someone in this kind of forum. Most others see it as some sort of exaggeration, insanity or false machismo when it's nothing of the sort. Talking about brotherhood in non military circles is cliche to outsiders, but it's the most real thing in the world when you've lived it with some of the finest guys in the world.

And don't get me started on being in garrison! Chaps doesn't need a bodyguard at the base chapel back home, so unless I'm at the range maintaining or improving my marksmanship or expeditionary skills, I'm wasting my time. Please, no more mindless self-directed learning courses! If I didn't fail my annual AT Awareness training the past 5 years, do I really need to take it over and over again?

I digress. All that to say: I know exactly what you mean and it's not just you.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 25 at 2013 11:49 PM

2013-12-25T23:49:02-05:00

I would say it is the high that you feel. We will never get a chance to feel that again for some of us. I went to Iraq twice and had two different experiences. I enjoyed both trips for different reasons. The bonds you forge while deployed are something that you will never get a chance to develop at home. It is something that is life changing. I attached an article I read a while back about this. It sums it up for me.

I Miss Iraq. I Miss My Gun. I Miss My War.

A year after coming home from a tour in Iraq, a soldier returns home to find out he left something behind.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 26 at 2013 7:59 PM

2013-12-26T19:59:47-05:00

Of course you miss it, you were Steadfast & Loyal!

Response by CPT Pedro Meza made Oct 5 at 2016 3:52 PM

2016-10-05T15:52:46-04:00

I will admit, that a person depending on the experience get easily get addicted to the rush of danger and as well as the challenges that war provides, and just like being in a bad relationship, you miss it when it gone. I know that I still do and as I deal with injuries from deployments I would rather die in battle then to live depending on the VA. My plan is to become a suicide bomber for our side and go after ISIS or Al Qaeda when the body pains become to strong.

Response by SGT David Crutchfield made Oct 5 at 2016 4:11 PM

2016-10-05T16:11:11-04:00

I don't miss it but sometimes wonder why I came back .

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 5 at 2016 5:48 PM

2016-10-05T17:48:52-04:00

Even though I was a fobbit battalion to brigade LNO, I was proud to know we had a successful parliament election and what I thought was a first sign of progress among the TICs and IEDs in Kirkuk in 2005 and 2006. I miss the days where we thought Iraq was going to get better and we would have stability but the campaign promise and our pullout in OND ruined that progress.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 15 at 2016 1:50 PM

2016-10-15T13:50:41-04:00

It's the old saying; you haven't lived until you've almost died. Most people will never understand what that means. Let's be honest, most people join with the small chance that something will happen during their career. When it does it is like being at the Super Bowl. Some of us are lucky and experienced it more than a few times from'83 to the present.

Response by SGT Jason Mouret made Oct 15 at 2016 3:41 PM

2016-10-15T15:41:43-04:00

Yes, I say it all the time. I will never be as cool as I was back then. We were brothers on the battlefield, some are not here anymore but I'd bet they would take that ride again.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 15 at 2016 10:19 PM

2016-10-15T22:19:19-04:00

I did two tours in Iraq. Do I miss it. I don't miss the long patrols where nothing happens but 12 hours of tedium. I do miss the camaraderie the laughter the tears and the friends that we lost. I get asked what it was like and I always answer "It was great. It's the only time in a combat arms soldiers career when he can actually do the job that he was trained to do. Would I go back? Yes I would

Response by SPC Dale St. Pierre made Oct 15 at 2016 10:48 PM

2016-10-15T22:48:20-04:00

Yes and no, I miss the hustle and bustle. But my deployment was reeked of bad leadership, and the CoC trying to get it like it was a garrison setting in '09 -'10, just b4 it was renamed to Iraqi new dawn.

Response by SGM Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 17 at 2016 12:39 AM

2016-10-17T00:39:11-04:00

I always felt safer with my team, now as I get older and closer to retirment I spend my days teaching my kids how to clear rooms and breach and so on with nerf guns... because they are my team at home. We need to get ride of a lot of the dumb gun laws that we didt have to deal with over there...

Response by SSG Wesley Cox made Jan 7 at 2017 11:48 PM

2017-01-07T23:48:33-05:00

I feel the exact same way. I live in weatherford texas now after my 10 years of service and a few deployments my injuries forced me out. I started having anxiety bad and not because Ptsd but because I feltbalone and didn't have my brothers around everyday and that familybfeelibg knowing none of these dudes would let anything happen to me And if it did they'd die trying to prevent it. You can't get that anywhere else in the world. Not as a cop or a firefighter..nowhere. since I live in Texas and struggled with this I started a group and it's not just a hangout it's for our era of vets who have the same struggle and have Ptsd or even if you don't but it's equine therapy (horses). So I got 12 horses and 7 days a week vets come to my Ranch and we talk and take care of the horse and I teach them horsemanship and riding in the arena and even have volunteers who come out and help with mounting the vets who are amputees or so injured they can't get on themselves and have special saddles for those guys and have what's called western trail course for guys who want to compete and we train for competitions and have one this week and get chances at winning a lot of money and buckles or trucks and even some shows do houses for the vets class because we compete in the veterans class not against career cowboys haha...but it's a great bonding experience and if you have Ptsd it is a great therapy for it because you have to become one with this massive animal and if you are angry or depressed or thinking of bad things or anything but what you are doing on that horse they can since that..basically like a service dog.. and the horse won't do what you want it to do or some just won't even move. Sorry for the long post but the answer to your question is yes I miss it everyday and will never experience anything like it but I battle those feeling and thoughts with my group together like we would in theater and it's that great brotherhood family feeling all over again. IF ANYONE LIVED IN TEXAS NEAR FORT WORTH AND READS THIS ADD ME AND WRITE ME BACK AND COME JOIN US I PROMISE YOU'LL LOVE IT AND WANT TO BE AT MY HOUSE EVERY DAY LIKE MOST OF THESE OTHER GUYS. IT'S FREE AND ALL FUNDED FROM DONATIONS..MY POCKET..THE VA..AND RAN BY MYSELF..VOLUNTEERS..AND IS AS A TEAM AND HAS BEEN A HUGE SUCCESS AND GROWING BY THE DAY

Response by SSG Wesley Cox made Jan 7 at 2017 11:54 PM

2017-01-07T23:54:02-05:00

Back again. Forgot to add that I miss it so much I tried joining DASH..the US vets who volunteered and went back to Iraq to fight ISIS and are still there but with my injuries I wouldn't be able to keep up and without the logistical support we had in the military I figured it would be a matter of time before something happened and had to think about my wife and kids this time and chose to do what I do now instead but still have that itch to join DASH

Response by SGT Josheua Cooke made Mar 15 at 2017 7:20 PM

2017-03-15T19:20:40-04:00

Brother, if it were not for the lack of beer, sex and my children I'd have been happy to stay forever. Life had never been more simple than when I was deployed. I knew what was expected of me at any given time and it was simple. May have sucked at the time, but I have very fond memories and yearnings to have that again.

Response by SFC Terry Mabe made Aug 10 at 2017 8:22 PM

2017-08-10T20:22:15-04:00

Between Army Reserve and AGR I had 42 yrs time in service. My first deployment was in 2004 for twelve months. I deployed two more times. I miss all the time I spent with all the soldiers I served with or deployed with. Yes I would do it all over again. I am Retired SFC Terry Mabe.

Response by SPC Kyle De Wolf made Jul 13 at 2018 4:56 PM

2018-07-13T16:56:17-04:00

I think it’s a terrible idea because I did not enjoy one minute of war, but sometimes I feel nostalgic for the experience, maybe because there was a sense of purpose and solidarity that is sadly lacking in the wider society, but I would suggest replacing wartime nostalgia with civic engagement and volunteerism at home, help veterans, improve the country, stuff like that. But I really feel it sometimes too.