Its been 2 years and 4 months since I was enlisted into the Singapore Armed Forces (Army) back in June 2002. Words can’t describe how I hated it and I am so grateful it is now over!

I wasn’t a combat soldier. I didn’t have to run around in the jungles with rifles doing all sorts of military exercises to prepare for war. I was considered by many to be "lucky" to be a clerk. But I still wasn’t happy about it because I never wanted to be in the army in the first place. Its compulsory military service in Singapore and I don’t think many guys look forward to it.

I had to learn to live with doing the work I hate and being around people that I didn’t particularly like and also being bossed around and yelled at by unreasonable officers which I didn’t have much respect for. I’m ok with all that because its part and parcel of being in the army. We all expect to be treated like dogs and get peanuts for it. Because I was "lucky" to escape the tough work of combat soldiers, I didn’t get paid like SGD $500 - 700 + a month like them. Instead I received the lowest "allowance" of SGD $350 - $440 a month. They don’t expect you to be paid, this is just a token sum for you to spend.

Apart from all the things I hated about my time in the army. It also reminded me why I had to learn to stop relying on a JOB to earn a living. In the army its pretty extreme in the way they dictate your life on what to wear, what to eat, where to sleep, what time to sleep, what to eat, when you can take a break etc. So I think I experienced a great amount of pain of letting someone else control my life that I hit a "pain threshold". Its a point where "enough is enough" and you can’t take it anymore!

That’s the best lesson I got out of my time in the army. You have to take responsibility for your own life and not abdicate that responsibility to someone else because the chances are they are going to screw it up for you.

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