This is the second birthday I have spent here in Iraq. The last one was 07 May 2005. This time I spent the day gearing up to head on another mission. We left Baghdad after being there for 9 months to head to some other place deep in the Northern part of the country. We sat at the helipad until almost 0200hrs in the morning. My Soldier's sang Happy Birthday and we celebrated with near beer (as usual- nonalcoholic beer) and cigars. The stars were bright and I gave thanks for another day. I do not enjoy being here but, I enjoy the presence of Soldier's. The comradeship is unprecedented. As much hell as war can be Soldier's make it the best experience possible.
When the Chinook arrived we geared up with approximately 150 pounds of gear each and boarded the bird to prepare for a new chapter in our 15 month long mission. After getting settled in a bit in our new location we established communications. Of course I am always the first with internet because that's my job! I was chatting with my wife on instant messenger and heard the familiar whistling of 2 rockets. In which I later found out were 107mm rockets. I threw my laptop and low crawled on the floor trying to get to safety. After a total of 4 rockets. People were running all over the place trying to get accountability of one another and see who had been hit. Come to find out the first rocket landed approximately 50 feet from where I was sitting. It's a gamble, you never know whats next. You say those silent prayers and hope for the best. You try your best to take care of one another but the first thing you learn is that life goes fast, especially in war.
Continue to pray for our safety.
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4 comments:
You and your soldiers are in my prayers and while you could not be with your family and friends on your birthday, I hope you were able to have positive moments of reflection on it.
Happy Birthday, Adrian...
you'll be home safe for the next one. keep writing... we value your insight.
cheryl
Happy (belated) birthday, my friend. I've been shutting down a semester and starting a new one, and I missed checking your blog in time to raise a near-beer in your honor on the right day! :(
And there is email coming your way as well. Keep the faith, as ever!
Happy belated birthday, buddy! I don't know what made me more sad - the near-miss with the missle, or the near-beer. Both are pretty scary, in my mind. But, I just saw your fun vacation pics with your happy little family (I cannot believe how big Anaya has gotten!!!!) and that cheered me up :-)
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