Army weekend

So I'm struggling with what to write about, but I know that I want to write. Hmmmm, well this past weekend I had Drill, working for the Army. This was the first drill that I've been to since I was selected at a Warrant Officer Candidate. This means that I have the option to not go to Afghanistan with my unit in the Spring. I had decided to take this opportunity and advance my career and life. They had been counting on me going with them in a rather important position, and now didn't have anyone to fill it. As I expected, this didn't make them happy, but a few of them encouraged me. We have a saying in the Army: The Army will get theirs, make sure you get yours while you still can. Sad way of looking at it, but its so true. If you let it, the Army will keep taking advantage of you till well, you're dead. I've given up almost a year and a half working for them, and about 4 semesters of school, soon to be 5, working for them. It gets kinda frustrating seeing how much I pour into it, and not only time, but emotion and energy. I wouldn't mind so much, if they treated us right. Like I didn't mind when my Commander cussed me out for leaving (I happened to be holding a loaded pistol at the time, so really, that was all he could do). But several others who were once my friends didn't talk to me, mostly because I figure I was disgraced, or a slacker. Either way I was in the dog house with my unit and they weren't going to risk being tainted themselves by talking to me. I can't blame them, usually when someone does what I did, they're exiled and treated like they have the plague.
My friend Paul used to work at our unit full time. Nobody put as much time or energy into doing things right and on time like he did. He would stay all night working on a project to make sure that it would get done, even when the responsibility isn't his. He went back to being a normal Reservist like me, and since he wasn't there to do everything for the unit like he normally does, nothing got done. He had to come in a few days early and work almost nonstop to make sure that things went according to plan. When things kicked off on Friday morning, the first group of vehicles that were supposed to move out left only a half hour late. Not too bad considering I've seen us leave up to three hours late. Well that wasn't good enough for some people, and they were cursing his name the whole time. This, and other things, made it so their most dedicated Soldier wants to leave the unit at the first possible chance.
Sigh, I guess it all comes down to what I talked about with a younger Soldier this past weekend who was having problems of his own with the Army. We figured out that while we don't love the Army per say, we do love our Country, and its for that, that we were here, and it's for that, that we'd make the sacrifices we do. Because sometimes, as much as I love my Country, I sure hate the Army.