Death, many of us dread it; we wish we would never have to accept our faith of no longer living. However, in certain circumstances there is a side of us that discards the idea of death to save those who are close to us. The close bonds we obtain can drive us to perform extraordinary things. When in war, the men only have each other. They rely on each other, maybe they do not even get along, but they will take any measure to keep each other alive. Mankind is already capable of self-sacrifice for the protection of others which is intensified in soldiers during war; ultimately suggesting that extreme situations forces out a protective, selfless side in humans.

A mother, a sister, a best friend, maybe even a stranger’s child in danger sparks something within humans. Two years ago, a man died when he jumped in front of a bullet for his girlfriend because a robber pulled out a gun. It goes against self-preservation; the close attachment he had caused that man to perform a selfless act in order to protect his girlfriend’s life. It is not bravery that pushed him to do this; it was the idea of losing her, the thought of failing her that pushed him to risk his own life for the woman he loved. Another situation with equal risk that brought out the protective side of others is the attack on the Pittsburg school that occurred a year ago. Twenty-one students were injured, and the two people that suppressed the attacker were the assistant principal and the security guard. They could have ran, could of hid students, but instead they chose to risk their lives and tackle the enraged student down in order to save the innocent teenagers. That security guard was wounded as he put his life in danger to save children that he had no biological ties to. What is it that causes people to put their life aside in order to save another? What about self-preservation? It is the side that we do not always get to see; it is the protective instinct within us, the dive that pushes us to not fail those who are close to us. Humans will do anything to preserve their body and life, but the protective instinct that is wired into our brains can be overrun in extreme situations.

Soldiers in an unfamiliar country with unacquainted men gradually form a special kind of bond that very few fully understand. These men may not get along, they might have never associated with each other back in their homeland, but in war they form a brotherhood where they would lay their life down for each other. Ordinary people such as teachers, mothers, and friends will lay down their life for their loved ones, but these men who barely know each other will do the same. Participating in a fire-fight in Afghanistan is just about as extreme of a situation that anyone could ever experience, and it brings out a side in soldiers that you would not expect. It is not about being brave, it’s not about receiving a medal of honor, and it is not about looking good or just doing the duty of soldier that causes them to jump on a grenade in order to save their comrades. It is the extreme situation that causes one to not be able to think, to just react on raw instinct that results in the self-sacrificial mentality. It is the love; the bond that the men have formed that is brought out during war. They are ordinary people that are placed into an extreme situation where the idea of failing each other lays heavily in their minds.
Humans can easily be seen as being selfless, but there is a dormant side in us that surfaces when put under circumstances that threaten the lives of those that are close to us. Soldiers are prime examples of this trait since their lives and their comrades lives are put at risk during every second. They are like the people you see in the street: your neighbors, your friends, and your family; they all have the capability to put aside their lives in order save another’s; it just needs to be activated.