The last
ten days in Afghanistan were miserable, our replacement unit took over
operations so we had nothing to do but wait. Our flight schedule changed about
seven times and each change pissed me off because they were never in our favor.
We left
the country in a completely packed C-17 and to make matters worse we were in
full kit. Wearing body armor and a helmet on an airplane did not make any sense
to me but, then again a lot of stuff in the Army does not make sense to me. By
the time we loaded the airplane I was starving and I had to pee but I did not
care, I was going home. Over the past nine months I've grown accustomed to
being miserable.
The
first leg of our journey home brought us to Eastern Europe. Romanian was a
welcome sight. The air was cool and everything was green. I loved it! There
were plenty of local women working on the base and they were a welcome sight as
well! We stayed in the land of Dracula and gypsies for about two days and then
we were off again but this time we‘re on a civilian aircraft. Gunny and I did
not get to ride in first class but we were in the front of the aircraft. Our
flight attendant was good looking and smelled great! I was trying my hardest to
flirt with her but so was everyone else on the plane.
The
second leg of our journey home was better than the first, we stopped in
Ireland. The stop only lasted about four hours and we never left the airport
but our battalion commander had a great surprise for us. It was about 0200 in
the morning and the small airport we stopped was completely empty. An old Irish
man in uniform met us at the terminal and an escorted us to a duty free shop
and a bar that they opened up just for us. The bar was the surprise. Our
battalion commander said that each person was allowed to drink two beers. Now
this might not mean anything to my readers but in the Army it meant the world
to the men. Believe it or not the Army is pretty gay when it comes treating us
like men and alcohol is one of those these that they generally frown upon. Of
course it was not allowed in Afghanistan, they had it for sale in Romanian but
it was against the rules for us to drink it. So, it came as a surprise to
everyone when our great leader allowed each of us to buy two drinks a piece.
There I was sitting at a bar in Ireland with two ice cold pints of Guinness in
front of me. For the first time in nine months I felt like a free bear again.
Believe
it or not the third leg of the trip we stopped in Rockford, Illinois. I was
practically home, there were several Vietnam Vets at the airport to greet us, and
they had coffee and snacks for us. I really enjoyed talking to the old vets and
they seemed really happy to be welcoming us home. An old Marine in a wheel
chair told me about his trip back from the war, he said that there was no welcome
home party for him. He had sadness in his eyes but I could tell he was happy to
give us something that he didn't get. I believe that they were just as grateful to
talk to us as we were to talk to them. In a way I think our return trip from
war helped them heel in a way. We had a connection with those old vets that is
hard for me to explain in words.
From
Rockford we flew to El Paso. Home at last! There were many people there to
greet us but before we were released to our families there were a few things we
had to take care of. First we waited in a long line to turn in our weapons and
then we had a couple of briefs to sit through once the briefs were complete our
battalion commander told us we had one more thing to do before we could go
home. There was someone there that wanted to talk to us, before the person was
even introduced I knew who he was, he looked just like our Sergeant Major that
was killed in action. It was our Sergeant Major's brother. My mood went from
being extremely excited to sad. Not all of us made it home. The Sergeant
Major's brother welcomed us home and thanked us. A lot of the guys shook his
hand and gave him a hug but I could not bring myself to do it, he looked too
much like our fallen brother, too much reality for me. I should have been happy
to be home, I should have been happy to see my family but instead I was
thinking about the Sergeant Major and I felt depressed.
It will take
time to adjust to the civilian life again and I am hoping as soon as I see my
friends and family that things will to return back to some type of normal.
Now that
my time in the US Army is over I will return back to Rockford Illinois and back
to my friends and my family. Having this
time and the experience with these awesome soldiers over the past 9 months will
be something that will be a lifelong memory.
Thank
you again
2nd Battalion 5th Infantry for “having my back”
G/B
Pvt. 1st class and ½
