Would you do it all over again?

[PAC Man]

Amazing the stories on this strand from young and older (not old, damn it!)-- and, it's lived on for 4 years running! I wonder, "madslashers1-2", did you have any idea when you posed this question the response you would get from your brothers?

To answer your question forces us, I think, to look DEEP-- for our reasons for wanting to be a Ranger, then the harder question of why we left (as we all must do sooner or later).......

"creeping death" said, "In some ways, leaving the Rangers is monumentally harder that getting into the Rangers. Getting there is an ordeal that lasts a few months, leaving there is an emotional battle that will be fought inside of yourself, to varying degrees, ever single day for the rest of your life."

For me, to answer is therapy-- I need to grasp why I chose to do what I did/didn't do and when. In the end, we all must be satisfied in the choice we made because we made it for good reasons at the time. Regrets are of the devil's hand, my brother.

By now, I hope you went wiith your gut instinct and have made whatever you decided work. Either way though, you'll ALWAYS have the experiences to reflect upon and rely on. NO BODY can take that away-- EVER!

When you are isolated from those who understand-- REALLY understand, do what I've begun to do after 24 years-- reconnect with your ranger buddies, not to relive the past, but just to be heard and understand again. That's all.

Good luck to all who are in the stage of life of "moving on" after the ranger experience.

[RRDTm3]

There is a lot to do in life besides being a Ranger.

Yeah, but you only know that because you are a Ranger

[rgrpuck]

There is a lot to do in life besides being a Ranger.

Yeah, but you only know that because you are a Ranger

Damn Bubba.....not bad not bad at all.

[RRDTm3]

There is a lot to do in life besides being a Ranger.

Yeah, but you only know that because you are a Ranger

Damn Bubba.....not bad not bad at all.

Doing what I can..............

[dyks]

Amazing the stories on this strand from young and older (not old, damn it!)-- and, it's lived on for 4 years running! I wonder, "madslashers1-2", did you have any idea when you posed this question the response you would get from your brothers?

To answer your question forces us, I think, to look DEEP-- for our reasons for wanting to be a Ranger, then the harder question of why we left (as we all must do sooner or later).......

"creeping death" said, "In some ways, leaving the Rangers is monumentally harder that getting into the Rangers. Getting there is an ordeal that lasts a few months, leaving there is an emotional battle that will be fought inside of yourself, to varying degrees, ever single day for the rest of your life."

For me, to answer is therapy-- I need to grasp why I chose to do what I did/didn't do and when. In the end, we all must be satisfied in the choice we made because we made it for good reasons at the time. Regrets are of the devil's hand, my brother.

It's true, I know a number of guys who wrestle with the mind fuck monster of leaving Reg. - definitely including myself. I think the GWOT only exacerbates that retrospective.


But I concur, regret gets you nowhere-fast. I think that mindfuck is representative of the dedication and devotion that got us there in the first place. Most of us always want to be on the mission, at the front of line, carrying the most weight, with the most responsibility. It's the "Send me first" mentality. Like the pastor's sig line- it's true.

So back to the original question- would you do it all over again?-

I challenge you to find me a batt boy that wouldn't.

[NupeRanger]

F#ck yeah, I'd do it all again! The only thing that I would change is staying to go to school. I never had the chance when I "thought" I was ready, so I left Batt of my own accord. However, not earning the black and gold has left me with a hole on my left shoulder, right above where my scroll sat. I am older, wiser, and fatter now, but I look back on those days as a young man as some of the very best of my life. If I died tomorrow, my time as a Ranger would be what defined my life. Few people feel as strongly about a piece of (Red & Black, of Black & Gold) cloth as Rangers feel about the brotherhood. That bond in and of itself is what makes it all worth it. In my mind, there is nothing greater than being a Ranger.

RLTW,

[cco375]

I'd do it all over again and then some. Biggest regret I have is not re-enlisting. I've been out for nearly 8 years now and the Scroll is still a way of life and will be till the day I die.

[rangerabe]

Look up Ranger Todd Currie (1-75old scroll) on facebook that's the good life. A Ranger success. When I met him in 1977, I was a E5 from 82d. Batt was deployed, he didn't treat me as a slug but as a ranger and got me through a rough transition. A real leader in the highest of Batt standards.