As a Baby Boomer born way after Korea and too old not to remember Woodstock, Gemini + Apollos 8-17, Kent State and Watergate. I hope the next generation(s) of American youth (children ARE the future but 40 years from now and not next week or next year, okaaay?) never has to grow out of the bullshit I had to grow out of. However, I never served in the U.S. military. I and my friends (not necessarily peers) were typical...just like the 1993 movie “Dazed And Confuzed”.
Well, I don’t know.
I am kind of in the same boat you are in, I suspect, and growing out of things is not always a bad thing, IMO. Doing things that probably aren’t in your best interest (or are just dumb) sometimes has value, as helps you understand boundaries.
At least it did for me.
I did a lot of things I am not proud of, and even openly ashamed of, but...I just had to learn from them and move on. And that has been a dynamic and ongoing process throughout life for me.
There is something humbling about it, but there is value in knowing both your flaws and your limitations.