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Capt. Ashley Collette still struggles with the complex emotions of losing her close friend in an explosion in Afghanistan while he was under her command.

In spite of her anguish, Collette is telling her story to encourage other soldiers to share the truth of their experience and embolden members of the public to ask questions even when it’s hard.

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“It’s challenging as a human being, it’s challenging both in the experience but more importantly on the return back home. I wish we could begin a dialogue between the Canadian Forces and the population to know that it’s OK to talk about it, it’s OK to ask questions,” Collette, based at CFB Edmonton, said in an interview Thursday. “I think it’s important, as part of the warrior ethos, to tell people what your experience has been.”

Photo by Larry Wong / Postmedia

Collette is one of five soldiers who are sharing their stories of fighting with the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan in a new TV documentary, I Am War — airing on the History Channel on Nov. 10 — looking to share the human experience of war.