when my time comes , I either die of old age with a whiskey in my hand , by accident living life to the fullest , or by my own choice for a purpose that is bigger than me .
To be in a situation so hopeless you have no option but to end the immediate suffering is a brutality I struggle to accept .
Apart from the horror , what was also unknown on the morning of 12th September 2001 in East Timor , is that this day would mark the beginning of the 20 years of war and sacrifice that lay ahead of us .
While some of my close friends would deploy to Afghanistan just weeks later , my first deployment came the following year in 2002 . In total , I would deploy to Afghanistan five times , some of my friends , up to eight . For what equated to multiple years of our lives and careers , we performed the duties entrusted to us by the Australian Defence Force and our political leaders .
The epic moments from those deployments would become permanently imprinted in our brains . The sacrifices by our children and families , getting shot at , blown up , and losing friends became a part of life . The acceptance of death showed the commitment we made to our country and the pursuit of the values Australia , and the West promoted . We believed in these values and still do . Some of us were so committed we stayed for the full 20 years of that fight , both in serving roles and post service to work with Australia ’ s public servants , keeping them safe as they advanced Australia ’ s national interest in Afghanistan ; all the while with war raging around us .
I stand by the choices of our leaders in undertaking the mission . Our purpose and intent was moral and just . To fight oppression and help all Afghans to govern themselves free of fear .
In 2001 , before the full US invasion , Richard Carlton of 60 Minutes ( Australia ) travelled to north-eastern Afghanistan and asked an Australian citizen fighting for
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