I am keenly aware of how fantastically blessed I am to have done 21 years active duty with the Army National Guard during the height of GWoT and come out with my body and soul mostly intact and a pension (and disability rating) that lets me have a modest life taking care of my kids and making music.
But I'm also keenly aware of how much it was a sucker's bet and how many things could have gone wrong to prevent me from "winning"