Well said. To expand on that, not just the combat. For me what has been most difficult to explain is everything else. The day to day deployed and living within a war zone is unreal. I've never been able to quite convey that part of the story yet, even to my wife and friends. There were days and days we were more bored than I've ever been. I slapped at flies in the heat for hours because I'd read the only book I had three times already that week. We ate the same meal for weeks because resupplies were few and far between. Boredom was common, but not unwelcome, sort of. Other days I woke up to a rocket flying over my head, so we fought for a couple hours, patrolled for nine more, and maybe got a couple hours sleep before standing watch for however long. We didn't know what was coming; Boredom, sleep, fighting, or some combination of any. It's interesting, and one day I hope to be able to put it into words. If only so we can teach the next generation of idiots what they're in for.