Hell, I've wanted this since I was 6! And red is my favourite colour so y'know... ;-)Dectomax said:Bloody Para's...misinformed youth; It's all about The Royal Marines! You don't want a pansy Cherry hat...theparsonski said:I am pretty much 100% certain that I'm going to join the British Army. I'd like to join as an Officer in the Parachute Regiment, and I'll be taking a scholarship next year for entry to Sandhurst, where they train officers.
For me, I seek something that I can completely dedicate my life to, while doing something good, all while experiencing a level of risk and adventure that most people never do. I'm certain I'll see some shit that won't be pleasant, I'll probably have to shoot at and kill other people, and I'll run the risk of being shot/stabbed/blown up/beheaded on the internet. But for me, it doesn't matter, because I sure as hell don't want to look back on my life in 30 years and have regrets. I want to live as much as I can, and what better way to do that than by leading men into combat?
Sure, I may die in the process, but better to die living tommorrow than to die in 70 years never having lived.
That's my reasoning, feel free to take issue with it, it doesn't matter to me what people think, I'm not joining to impress anyone or earn respect; I couldn't care less to be honest.
As for your reasoning, I'd reconsider. I applied for the RM's at 16, straight out of school and the training was the single most difficult thing I've ever done. ( Albeit RM training is longer, 32 weeks instead of 24+P company ) The Para's ain't an easy route. You'll get to a point where you'll be covered in mud, freezing your fucking arse off, soaking wet, sat in a field at night bundled up next to 3 or 4 other blokes who are in exactly the same position - a lot of the lads in my batch dropped after the Wet/Dry rotation; The soldiering part was easy, they enjoyed it, the being absolutely frozen to the bollocks for 2 days? Not so much. I'm not trying to put you off, I'm just saying the only thing that'll keep you going is your drive to WANT that Red beret. It's got to be burned into your mind, hurt and muscle that even when you're so exhausted you can't raise an arm, you still manage it.
OT: My Great-Granddad fought in WW2 as a Paratrooper, My Granddad fought in The Falklands as a Royal Marine, My Dad served in Ireland in the Infantry; It's just something that I felt I had to do seeing as it's almost a Family tradition, I wanted to make them proud and I wanted to show myself that I could do it.
But seriously, I'll probably go to Sandhurst first, which will be hard, and then I assume there is extra training for Para officers after, right?
Believe me, I know how hard the training will be, but I'm up for it. I'm sure I won't enjoy it, but the reward at the end is more than worth it. I can drive myself, I had to train for a 10K race in two weeks once, I ran 8 miles a day, and ended up doing it in 45 minutes. I'd never trained before that, and they were a tough couple of weeks considering, but I wanted to do well so badly. And it paid off - and I discovered that the effort is worth the reward.