last night we had a “welcome” cookout for some of the new guys replacing us. crab legs, steaks, non-alcoholic beers, music and a fire pit. felt like an old college gathering minus a big headache the next day. i even got to sleep late for a couple of hours.
we started taking the new guys out on a few missions the past couple of days in an effort to slowly and deliberately hand over command. yesterday i had a couple ride in my hummer with me and a few of my squad members. as we left the gate i said my prayer, as i've done from the start, and cranked up some “mood music” on a small cd player/speaker combo. i couldn't help but notice a difference in their composure. made me think back to the first time i left the wire and wonder if i had the same look on my face. i said what i could to ease the tension and calm their nerves.
as we rolled through near-by city, i heard some of the same comments i made only months earlier. how they couldn't believe the iraqis lived like they do, how the city was so nasty and how the children ran beside the hummer, waving and cheering. i noticed how de-sensitized i had became over the course of this deployment. it also made me think of our accomplishments over the previous year. yes, my platoon and i have definitely done our part to make this country a safer place riding it of over 78,000 lbs of explosive ordinance. no question. but have we, as a coalition, made this country a better place and eliminated a considerable amount of insurgents and terrorists? by no means am i confused about our occupation in this country. it is just as we near the end you can't help but wonder some of these things. who knows? you can only pray you have made a difference for the good.
bc