- A Soldier's Letters Home
-
May 22, 2005 -
Greg Writes
Hello all;
The date is 22 MAY 05, and I find myself needing
to write again. Before I start, I want to say
that I am completely overwhelmed with emotions.
A brief history if you will bear with me.
Approximately 3 weeks ago, I was contacted by my
mother regarding a friend of a
friend with whom she had been sending my letters
for entertainment purposes I am sure. <grin>
Anyway, I received an e-mail from some guy whom
I had never met named "Swordmaker" asking me if
he could print my letters on an online
newspaper. I thought it a funny at first, but
two days later, I was sent a link, and surprise,
there it was. This has been an
awesome journey for me. When I first read some
of the responses from "Freepers", I got choked
up, and misty eyed (seriously). I couldn't
believe the support that you all have shown. I
cannot tell you how this has made me feel. I
have shown some of the posts to my soldiers, and
they are so full of pride for our Country right
now. I appreciate all of your prayers as they
are needed and well received. I write this as a
precursor to this...
On Friday, 20 May 2005 at about 2300 hrs, we
were heading to the Wolf Brigade Compound to
meet with them. There had been several IED's
(Improvised Explosive Devices) on one of the
main routes that
evening, so we (my three trucks) took another,
less traveled, rural and small road in the
outskirts of outer Baghdad. About four miles
into it, I was watching the tail lights of my
Commanders vehicle as we were driving blacked
out. All of the sudden, an explosion and my
Commanders vehicle disappeared in a large cloud
of dirt and smoke. I immediately attempted to
gain communication with him and his crew and
could not see anything ahead of me. After
several attempts,
he came over the radio and stated that he was up
and everyone was alive.
At that time, my truck began to receive
automatic gunfire, and my gunner started to
engage the enemy. My first truck gave me their
report that they were clear. Thinking that they
were now ahead of us, and we were split apart, I
ordered my driver to shoot through the
smoke. He looked at me and said "Sergeant, I
can't see anything". I told him to act as if it
were a NASCAR crash and shoot the smoke. He
replied with "roger that" Let me tell you about
a bat out of hell. He
punched it and off we went. When we got about
400 meters down the road, I saw a vehicles tail
lights, and knew that we had caught up with the
other two vehicles. As we approached, I only was
able so see one
set.
After establishing that it was my lead truck, I
got a sick feeling in my stomach. I then called
to my Commander, and asked where he was. He told
me that they were able to pull out of the ditch
and head out in the direction from which we
came, but now the vehicle could not move and
they were in the middle of this road and
unprotected.
I immediately turned both trucks around and once
again headed into the danger area hoping that
there was not a secondary IED. When we arrived
at the initial blast site, the visibility was
still zero, and we once again flew through the
kill zone only hitting a pothole jostle. A few
seconds later we arrived at the other truck
which was completely destroyed and was amazed
that they were able to drive it at all. A quick
reaction force was assembled from another unit
who was in the area to assist us, and provide an
escort back to the Forward Operation Base (FOB
Falcon). After taking everyone to the Medical
Center for minor treatment, our day was
finished.
The following day, we continued mission as usual
and took the same road to see the blast site and
look for evidence for our Intelligence Section.
Here is where your prayers took over for me.
When we arrived at the blast site, my mouth
dropped. "The pothole" which we ran over at 60
mph was 17ft in diameter, and 8ft deep. The bomb
squad had stated that it was a 500lb Russian
bomb which was used. The crater was in 1/3 of
the road, and right in the path which we were
driving.
When we drove over it, I found out later that my
Commanders vehicle was in that hole, and we
should by all rights have driven into the side
of them at 60mph plus. The second time back in
that direction, the same path was used (middle
of the road) and 2 times we missed the crater
driving blind through the smoke and dust. The
blast itself took out the entire front end of
the vehicle. If the bomber had only waited a
fraction of a second later, the explosion would
have been center mass.
I also found out that just prior to the
incident, the gunner had just lowered his upper
body back down inside of the vehicle to ask a
question, thus saving his life from both the
explosion and shrapnel. After driving around for
three weeks in old style HUMVEE's which only
have armor additions placed on the doors, we
were given three brand new complete up armored
HUMVEE's that morning.
If there ever were any of my soldiers who did
not believe in prayers or miracles ...They do
now.
So my new friends, this is not a letter home as
my family has not heard yet. This is a thank you
from the bottom of my heart for all of your
support and all of your thoughts and prayers. I
do have to say, if the Insurgents are right and
WE are the infidels then Allah must have had
blinked or fell asleep, cause he sure did miss
this one.
God bless G.W. and you. Thank you for
everything,
Greg
May 14, 2005 -
Greg Writes
The date is now 14 MAY 05, and my
team is near exhaustion. We have been going on
back to back nights, with little or no sleep,
then back to work because citizens are calling
the brigade with more intelligence. We are now
at over 200 arrested, several weapons, and
countless of them, (85-90% showing signs of
explosive residue on their persons. It is at
this time, that I reflect as to what I (we) are
doing and the tiredness goes away for a brief
while. We are putting in over 24hrs non-stop,
then off to bed for a few hours. The "morning"
consists of attempting to get supplies for the
brigade, as it is this team that is
begging, "borrowing", or------ I hate to use
this word as it is such a strong word---
"stealing". The Army has this saying. There is
only one thief in the Army ...everyone else is
just getting their stuff back!! This
unfortunately holds true for us. This Unit which
we are working with, and is making the most
difference has been left alone to scrape for
themselves. My soldiers are running around,
digging in the base dump
(yes, it's true) finding usable, discarded items
which the brigade can use.
The Iraqi government is doing little to support
them. They have "Soldiers" who go on these
raids wearing flip flops, because of the lack of
boots. There are little uniforms, mainly
mismatched sets. The
communications are horrendous. The main Cellular
phone company is "Iraqna" and they own a
monopoly, and all Sims cards are through this
company. Never mind hearing a pin drop, because
you can hardly get
through. The officers are coordinating during
the raids with these personal cellular phones
that are pay by the minute, and use these "Sims
Cards". My commander, CPT ***** who is with E
Battery, 216th
Air Defense Artillery, gave his own personally
purchased $30 Sims card up to the Brigades
intelligence officer to assist with the cost of
talking to informants.
These Soldiers make squat, and are once again
using their meager salary, taking away from
their families to make this work, and work for a
safe Iraq. I feel so helpless, but outside of a
few donations from my
personal gear, a few purchases at the PX, there
is not a whole lot else I can do. I would be
bankrupt in 3 months. I have kids for that
<grin>.
Dad and Mom, if you want to send
anything to me, you can get online
and buy "Iraqna" Sims cards even one would be
huge. These and uniforms/boots are the most
important things to make this whole thing
succeed, and you don't have those. However, I do
remember as a kid, other kids telling me "My mom
wears combat boots" So, if you can
find those boots in the garage mom, you can send
them to me <grin>.
I do want to add, that there is not a word of
grumbling to be heard from them. It is a
pleasure to watch them work, and we are
beginning to have a strong bond and a
friendship, that I could never have
imagined 1 year ago. When we arrive at the
compound, their eyes light up, and they are so
happy to see us, as we are them.
There is a bond here that cannot be broken. As
it was explained to me by a Lieutenant Colonel
with the Brigade, "There is a bond with Warriors
so strong, that it is stronger than with family
and brothers." I
thought about what he said later, and do agree.
As soldiers, we live in the dirt together, watch
each others backs in firefights, do things that
I have never done nor will do with my own
siblings, and live in the same danger together.
Knowing their culture the way I do now, family
is everything to them, and male siblings
(brothers) are next to everything. For him to
place a warriors bond ahead of his own family is
something to be said. I do not doubt the
sincerity of his words, and I do embrace them.
Well, I must sign off again and get ready for
this evening. Just want everyone to know that we
are making huge steps. I am so proud to be a
part of this historical change. God bless "MY"
Commander in Chief,
and pray for him to find wisdom in all that he
does, as I know that he needs it as do we all.
Till then Salama, and I love you all,
Greg
May 11, 2005 -
Greg Writes
Salome-Ma-La-ka (Peace be unto
you).
The Date is now 11 May 2005, and I find myself
writing you once again. I know ..."WOW, two
letters in less than 4 months, he must be
bored." (Not that that is a bad thing, except if
you are on the receiving end of my mundane
letters). <grin>
My newly assembled Team has now been on several
large raid/ strike operations with the famous
Wolf Brigade and in three raids, and have netted
over 156 suspected insurgents. For you curious
persons, if you go to Google.com and type in
"Iraq Wolf Brigade, you will have some
interesting reading. Anyway, the first raid that
we did happened at 0100hrs. For you which do not
understand the highly intelligent military time
group, Mickey's big hand is on the 12, and his
little hand is on the 1. (Sorry dad, stole your
ancient joke, but couldn't resist) On this raid,
we hit over 40 target houses in just over 3
hours. My U.S. Army team was responsible for the
"Breach" , this constituted driving a Humvee up
to the front gate, and either ramming it open,
or attaching a tow chain to it, and quickly
backing up, thus popping the gate open. At that
time, the great Mongol Horde (approximately 20
Wolf Brigade Soldiers) ran through, and kicked
in the door of these "innocent" insurgents. If
you don't believe that they are innocent, just
ask them. It is not unlike the State
penitentiaries back home who are full of
innocent people.
It is amazing at the intelligence of these
operations. The Wolf Brigade has embedded
Confidential Informants, and others who assist
with operations. They (CI's) are actually riding
in the vehicles pointing out the houses, or are
inside as well when the arrests happen. They
themselves are arrested, and treated the same as
well, so as not to raise suspicions as to their
identity. The brigade's success relies strictly
on surprise and speed. Several of the locations
took under 2 minutes each and 2 to 3 individuals
were brought out at a dead sprint. This is done,
not to allow the remaining residents to alert
anyone else, prior to the next hits, which are
sometimes 2 to 3 houses away. Today, we hit two
houses that were empty of personnel. However,
the back door was still swinging, and in the
open position at 3 am. It was
obvious that whoever was there, just made it
out.
Anyway, as we are continuing the raids about 15
minutes later, we began to receive direct fire
from several automatic weapons (AK47's) the
distance was about 400 meters, or 4 football
fields (rough
estimate) watching the green tracers coming in
our direction is not a pleasant feeling. After
getting my other truck online, so as not to
create a fratricide situation with my gunners.
My commander attempted to contact our third
truck over the radio, which was
positioned in the rear of the long trail of
vehicles. (Not a good feeling, knowing
that there are my soldiers somewhere else, and I
cannot support them, nor know where exactly they
are). Anyway, we left the area where we were (2
trucks) and drove toward the location of the
contact in blackout, knowing that the other
truck was somewhere in the middle. Several
minutes later, we found them, and drove like a
bat ...out of the kill zone. Once a status check
was
complete, we drove back to the Wolf compound to
re-link with the strike teams.
Well, after it was all complete.
It was up to my team to process the detainees,
by utilizing an explosives identity kit called
"X-Spray." Of the 53 detainees, 42 came up
positive for either TNT, or "Semtex" which is a
type of plastic explosive. 3 of the detainees
were "Emirs" or Prince's, which translates to 15
or more beheadings to their records. Let me tell
you about scum. I am looking at these
individuals, and taking their pictures, giving
them water etc., knowing that they were more
than likely directly involved with blowing up my
buddies who are no longer with us, or killing
innocent people who just want to live in
peace. It is very difficult to keep my
composure, but my Professionalism, and Soldier
Ethos must be maintained. At times, I can see my
soldiers looking at me, waiting for a reaction.
The Wolf Brigade however, lives under a
different code of conduct, and at times I have
to remind them as to what is not acceptable.
They do not beat them or anything like that, but
they definitely inflict a few
seconds of discomfort. It is hard not to take
joy or be gleeful of the actions especially
since we just had two memorial services for a
couple of soldiers in my Battalion who were
struck by IED's.
May 4, 2005 -
Greg Writes
Hi,
Once again, I find my self
needing to write in order to keep you up on the
latest. It is now about two weeks since I sent
my last letter, which I am sure that you have
framed on the mantle, in sequence.
Things were running smoothly
for us, as we were incorporating the Iraqi
Police in with our patrols. Let me tell you,
some of them are awful. My platoon was involved
in an operation (curfew patrol), with the PSYOPS
(Psychological Operations
Loudspeaker team. Our mission was to broadcast
the curfew time, and enforce it. As we stopped
at a large intersection, everyone was set up in
a 360 degree security posture, with the vehicles
at all crossroads. All of the sudden, a vehicle
came speeding up to our location. One of my
gunners hit the vehicle with a 2 million candle
watt spotlight, to let him know that we were
there. The dismounted elements also lit their
flashlights on the driver. The vehicle then
slammed on his breaks, stopping about 100 meters
from our location.
All of the sudden, the vehicle
accelerated coming directly for us. You can
imagine the pucker factor, with all of the
Vehicle Bombs that we are finding. Anyway, my
gunner opened fire, with great trigger control,
and fired a single shot from his .50 Cal.
Machine gun, into the engine block. (For those
of you that don't know, the M-2 Machine gun is a
very large weapon, and is automatic. It goes
thru 7-10 rounds at the slightest squeeze of the
trigger.) Anyway, at that time, the rest of the
dismounted soldiers in that location began to
fire as well.
By now, the vehicle was
traveling at about 30 mph, and getting close to
our main position. The well placed aim disabled
the vehicle and it came rolling to a stop ending
its travel only 25 meters from us (just for your
information, the blast distance of a small
passenger Vehicle Born Improvised Explosive
Device (VBIED) is 500 meters.) Upon approaching
the vehicle, it was found to have a 13 yr old
driver, mother, and cousin in the backseat. One
of the rounds had hit the rear passenger in the
thigh. Our medic immediately began to work on
the 17 yr old male.
When I questioned the young
boy (driver) he told me that he was frightened
when he saw us because it was after curfew, and
the driving age in Iraq is 18. He said that he
panicked and decided to drive through us to get
away. Man did I give him what for. I explained
that he almost got everyone in the car killed,
because of his actions.
A short time later, the boys
father showed up, and proceeded to box his ears.
I am happy to say that the 17yr old will be
fine, but I am sure that he is going to kick his
cousins behind.
* * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * *
The Date today is 4 MAY 05, I
am sorry that I have not kept you up to date as
much as I should. I recently was asked, and
volunteered for a different mission. I am no
longer with my Company, and am now attached over
to a new Task Force. This idea was on the
drawing board a couple of months ago, but no one
was sure if it was going to kick off or not.
Well, approximately 1 week ago, I was once again
asked if I still wanted to take part in this
adventure. I thought about it for oh, say ½
second and stated YES!!
Well, you are probably
wondering as to what it is that I am doing. I am
the Non Commissioned Officer In Charge (NCOIC)
of (an) MITT Team (Military Transitional
Training Team). I am working with the *****
Brigade of the Iraqi Armed Forces. This is a
team whose sole purpose is to conduct Strikes,
and Raids on suspected terrorists and locations
of high value targets.
This Unit was originally
founded by the Colonel (Col. ********) He was a
former officer in Saddam's Army, and retired to
civilian shortly after the invasion. While at
home in Sadr City, he got sick of all of the
innocent children, people, and coalition forces
being killed from the local insurgents. He then
spoke with 4 of his friends one day, and they
immediately started kicking in the doors where
known insurgents lived, and made citizen
arrests, turning in the majority to the
Coalition. He told me that the others just
didn't want to be arrested. As he finished
telling me this, he gave me a wink, and a huge
grin.
This wrecking crew of 5, soon
turned into 50 as word of mouth spread. The
Brigade, less than a year old, now has 658
members, and has been given its official status,
working for the Ministry of the Interior.
My role in this is acting as a
U.S. Army Adviser, and I am working through at
Corp level. It is a high profile mission, and
has the support, and directive from the
Secretary of Defense, and other U.S.
Organizations with whom I cannot mention. It is
a position that I am fortunate to have, and feel
very strong sentiments about. This is what I am
here for. This program will and must succeed.
This program is one that will
allow the transition so all U.S. Forces can come
home, and allow the success for the new Iraqi
Government to take care of themselves. I do not
want my children or others to have to return to
this country in 10 years to fix, what we have
not finished properly. All I hear in the news
anymore is the American Public saying that it
(the war) was not worth it. I disagree, whole
heartedly.
These are people who do not
see the changes that I see, and do not see the
1000s of children and families who are praying
that we stay. For once there is stability, and
open defiance to the Mosques who are preaching
hatred. I even saw a barbershop which had a sign
in the window that read, "We shave beards". Tell
me that isn't change. Ok, enough of my rampage.
I digress.
* * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
It is the 5th of May and
this morning the ****** Brigade received
intelligence from imbedded informants that there
is a meeting of insurgents in Al-Doura, a small
township just outside of Baghdad. A raid
was quickly put together, and 5 pickup trucks of
soldiers rolled to the location. As soon as we
arrived in the crowded outdoor market, the
soldiers stormed through. Immediately, 22 males
standing together saw what was coming, and
raised their hands high in the air to surrender.
3 others decided to either fight, or ran. They
were immediately taken down. Hard I might add.
Talk about justice.
This is one of those things or
gray areas that I do not step, and have to turn
away. They are on their own Rules of Engagement,
and don't placate. There are no rules for them,
or vultures waiting for them to mess up in order
to drag them through scandals. They are
professional though, I do not want to leave a
false impression, but they are allowed to deal
there own justice by their culture. Well, during
the interrogation, which by the way is handled
by their Intelligence Officer (Something which I
don't want to get into grin). Techniques which
would land me in prison if I used, discovered
that 3 of the detainees were responsible for a
few of the beheadings that most of you probably
watched on TV. I will be adding some more
pictures to my yahoo link, of my New found
friends.
I am cautious though, as I
cannot trust them 100%. There are too many, and
the chances of the unit being infiltrated, is
very high. I am to live on location with them
the majority of the time, and sleep with my
pistol under my pillow (just in case). An
adviser was executed in his sleep a few months
ago while working with another Iraqi unit not
close to this Units caliber, but the possibility
is always there.
I do want to say, that this
unit has almost no support, to include Beds,
Mattresses, Blankets, Boots, Hygiene gear, Tooth
brushes, etc. It amazes me that the resolve and
motivation is so high. These soldiers sleep
under the stars in the dirt, covered up only
with their shirts, due to the lack of barracks.
The compound which they occupy
was given to them through just moving in one
day. It used to be a small ranch which Saddam
used to use. Out of the 150 dollars equivalent
in Dinars, these soldiers have to buy their own
food as well. They could work in the civilian
sector as un-skilled laborers, and make more
money. They choose instead to make a difference
for their people. It is amazing, not a
disparaging word is uttered. I look at the U.S.
Soldiers, who complain that they get steak once
a week which tastes a little freezer burned. I
want to walk up and slap them.
Later on, I went into the
back of my truck, and pulled out a Soccer ball
which I liberated. Actually, I "secured
unsecured property." The ball had lost its
owner, and I assisted it in finding a home, not
unlike a stray dog. Well, when I pulled it out,
guys came running. It was hilarious. These were
the same soldiers who disappeared when the
officers came out a few minutes prior, looking
for soldiers for work details. I got a good game
going with myself as a goalkeeper of course.
They were amazed that white Americans knew
anything about the game. Here I was in full body
armor diving around stopping shots on goal. I
forget how old I am, and will be paying for this
in the morning.
Well, I had better sign off
for now, but will write again soon, En-Shula
(God willing).
(Ma-aa sa-la-ma We-ya-kum), I
will see you when I see you.
Greg
April 24, 2005 -
Greg Writes
Well, I was going to check the
boxes, but it wasn't in the proper format for
ease. So, I just figured that I would write
something. I am sorry that I haven't written
sooner. We have just been so busy, and I kept
putting it off until tomorrow. Well, I see where
that gets me. Anyway, I am doing well. We have
had some major injuries, and a couple of deaths,
but overall it has been successful to this
point.
I did write Tom a quick note about a month ago,
and yes it is ok for him to publish my letters.
I am working on my next one, but due to the
incidents, I haven't written anything in a few
weeks. I just haven't the time. We are doing 10
to 12 hr patrols, and when we get back, everyone
is exhausted and have to get ready for the next
day (Weapons cleaning, re-supplies, vehicle
maintenance, etc. All this is
done prior to sleep. Then come all of the
reports, operation orders that have to be given
to the men, backbriefs, Pre-Combat Checks,
Pre-Combat Inspections, etc. So, yes my day is
packed. Anyway, I will try to write more often.
Love,
Greg
April 23, 2005 -
Mom Writes
Hi Sgt,
We haven't heard from you in so long, we don't
know whether you are still kickin' the desert
dust around or not. It would be nice to hear
something on a regular basis, even if it is just
fillin' in the multiple choice provided to you
below.
Please put an X in all boxes below that apply
to your situation:
[ ] I'm alive and still kickin'
[ ] Too busy to write
[ ] both hands wounded
[ ] everything is great here.
[ ] just kickin' back...lolligagin'
[ ] catchin' up with my sleep
[ ] runnin' a soccer camp
[ ] your option?
I know that it must be really scary for you
guys there, but it is also
scary for us too....not knowing.....with you so
far away in a very dangerous situation every day
and night.
Hugs.....Mother and Dad
April 12, 2005
- Greg Writes
Well all, here is the much awaited next chapter
in the Iraq saga AKA; (The Armpit of the
desert).
Upon our
return to Civilization, we were able to link up
with our unit in our new home. This is a
compound that used to house members of the Iraqi
Republican Guard, and Saddam's niece. The
main house is awesome, and our commander has a
swimming pool, whirlpool, and sauna in his room.
The "Palace" (House) is all Marble, with gold
sinks, and faucets. Overall, it is not a
bad compound and is actually quite nice,
partially due to my unit only sharing it with
one other Company in our Battalion, and half of
them are gone on mission at all times, 24/7.
I do have to say though, for the "elite"
Republican Guard, they were housed in some
crappy housing. It is amazing that this
region is one of the oldest in the world, and
yet it is based upon what we would have called
sub-standard in the 1930's.
The toilets
are set up with a pull chain with the water tank
approximately 3ft higher to allow enough water
pressure to flush the waste. However, DO NOT
flush the paper, as that is too much for it to
handle. We have to throw it in the trash bags
which are placed in each stall. The rooms are
small to say the least, and there are two
soldiers in each room, with all of our gear.
We have not seen our much awaited Conexes yet,
and are missing much needed equipment. We are
told that they will be here in 3 days. This has
been getting said for the last month on a daily
basis. It has now been a week later since the
last sentence and guess what?. The Conexes
have finally arrived.. whooohooo! Below
are some photos that correlate with the last
letter. One day, I will get caught up with
photos and entries.
Greg
March 24, 2005 -
Greg Writes (to Masako)
Masako,
Thank you for all of your kind, and heartfelt
words. I wanted to thank you for keeping me in
your prayers, as it has been rough here. Our
Battalion Chaplain comes around quite a bit, and
encourages us, but it is not the same as getting
notes from home. I will keep in touch.
Greg
March 20, 2005 -
Masako
(A Dear Japanese Friend)
Writes to Greg
Greetings
and love to you in Jesus' name,
Please remember that prayers are continually
going up for you and the men under you. Every
morning before you start, please read Psaml 91
together with your buddies. Then have all of you
cover yourselves and the families back home in
America with the Blood of Jesus. God never
fails. He will keep you safe under His
protective covering as a mother hen covers her
little chicks with her feathers. We back home
appreciate the sacrifice you and the military
are undergoing to preserve freedom back home.
God bless you. In Jesus' name,
Masako
March 15, 2005
The
date is 15 March 05, and we are gearing up for
the draft of the first constitution of the
country of Iraq. As of now, my company of 102
personnel is responsible for the safety and
security of the majority of the Baghdad area.
The elected congress will begin their arguing on
the initial draft in 2 days. It is amazing, this
region has not gotten along with each other for
1000's of years, and 32 people ranging from
Shiites, Sunnis, Kurds, among others are going
to get together and come to an agreement in 6
days. Yea, right.
We are as of
now up grading the amount of patrols in and
around the green zone, and the former Baath
party area. 3 days ago, the very pro
coalition regional police chief was assassinated
while at a police checkpoint. This tells
you how corrupt this area is. No one can
tell who are the good guys are from the bad.
When I get home, gun fire will no longer faze
me. VBIED's (Vehicle Born Improved
Explosive Devices) are a constant threat, and go
off regularly. Just last week, a garbage truck
loaded with over 4000 lbs of explosives drove
into one of the hotels in my sector which housed
civilian security contractors, and members of my
Battalion. Windows were blown out > of a mile
away, and caused significant damage to the
hotel. With all of this going on, the
local people's resolve is not faltering.
Tomorrow, a pro U.S., anti
insurgent demonstration/ March is scheduled
sponsored by one of the local Mosques. We are
now waiting, to see if this is a ploy by
insurgents in order to get a large group of
people in one location to create havoc. It is
unfortunate that we are always thinking of the
negative, but our safety, and the safety of the
public is first and foremost. My platoon will be
on QRF (Quick Reaction Force) tomorrow, and will
be the first to respond to any trouble.
We are
daily either setting on OP's (Observation Posts)
usually in some type of high rise like the top
of a Hotel, Water tower, or other type of high
structure. This is done to report enemy
activity, like enemy movement or to get a
distance and direction from compass azimuth, or
we are doing a combination of dismount patrol
with our gun truck following close behind, or
just vehicle patrol with curfew enforcement. The
wonderful and ancient city of Baghdad area is
the dirtiest and most diseased ridden place in
the world I am sure.
People will
dump their trash on the street, sometimes next
to a dumpster because it is beneath them to
place it inside. That is for the lower
class to do. However, this is the lower
class as well that do this. It is such a
backwards way of thinking.
The children
once again are our highlight in the city.
They are the cutest things, and know no anger
nor have anti-coalition sentiments. They
are constantly running up to us and want to
shake hands, and ask us our names. This is
done in broken English. Their favorite sentence
is; "Mr. give me Chocolate". This
translates into anything sweet. If anyone
wants to send me anything, make it hard candy.
On one patrol in what has to be the longest
strip mall that I have ever seen.
(Actually it is just a street with everything
for sale on the street.) Anyway, I
digress.
We were dismounted, and stopped
at this shop that sells, these lady finger style
pastries. These are the most delicious
things that I have tasted in forever. They
are an egg roll type shell with a flan inside,
and are deep fried in liquefied sugar oil.
Oh yea, by the way, they are $2.00 for a kilo
(about 25 each). Anyway, as I was walking
up to the shop, a group of boys ran up and
wanted money, chocolate, or anything that we
would give them. All with the exception of
one shy boy about 8 years-old. He waited
for everyone else to quit surrounding us, and he
walked up to me, stuck his hand out and with
much pride, just short of defiance said; "Hello
Mister, my name is Yoseph!!, and I am Kurd!!!!"
He was so cute with his blue eyes
and blonde hair. At that point he just
walked off. He left me slack jawed.
He wanted nothing, just to shake hands and
introduce himself.
I then went to the shop, and ordered 2 kilos of
pastries. I then turned around to the group that
was still in a mob close by incase we changed
our mind about giving them anything. I
then asked for Yoseph, and he shyly, but with
purpose walked up and said, "I am here!!"
As I handed him the glorious box of hidden
treasures, his eyes lit up. He assured me
that he would share with all of his friends.
No sooner
than I released the box, there was a mob.
It reminded me of a wilder beast that fell into
a school of piranha. My new-found friend
then placed the box under his arm like a
football running back on the Heisman trophy, and
cocked his other hand prepared to cold-cock the
next "friend" who was bold enough to make a
reach for the box of gold. After settling
them down, he slowly and deliberately opened up
the box, and handed each one out, making sure
that he was the last one to have one.
Well, I will
write soon on the next chapter in my escapades
of the mysterious city of Baghdad.
Until then,
take care and I am thinking of you.
Love you,
Greg
February 21, 2005 -
Mom (Ruth) Muses to Editor
Hi,
I received this letter from Greg today
(see Greg's letter of February 20
below).
I couldn't have asked for a
nicer birthday present! We have really
been praying for him. A week ago from last
Saturday (would have been the 12th or the 13th)
I was awake praying for Greg and his men. I
could not go to sleep at all! It is kinda like
a young mother with a new or young baby that
awakens in the middle of the night,
(sensing that something could be wrong with the
baby)....going into the nursery and finding the
baby tangled up in its blanket. I know that
God gives to mamas a sixth sense, a sense of
urgency, for their children (be they babies or
all grown-up). Actually the illustration of
the young mama with the new baby was about
Gregory....when I found him tangled up, with his
blanket wrapped around his head in the middle of
the night. I'm just wondering now if this
could have
been the case with the 3 minute time difference
and the IED incident that Greg and some of his
men experienced.
I know that this had to be an
answer to prayer and God's way of protecting
Greg and his men! This is why I made Greg
promise me that he would heed the advice of a
very dear Japanese friend (Masako)
and saint of God, to not forget to plead the
Blood of Jesus over himself and his men
everyday, that God would protect them like He
did for the Israelites. He commanded the
Israelites to apply the Blood of the Passover
Lamb on the lintel (over their doorways) and the
doorposts on either side. When the death angel
passed over to strike the firstborn throughout
the land of Egypt....the firstborn in the
households of God's people (the Israelites were
spared) because
of their obedience to God's word.
This shows me that it pays to
be obedient to God and what he asks us to do.
If God awakens us in the middle of the night and
we think we just have insomnia --- better have a
conversation with God
and ask him who or what He would have us to
pray for. You just never know......It may mean
a life or death matter for someone. Maybe,
someone we love dearly.
l Samuel 15:22 says, "And
Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in
burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying
the voice of the Lord? Behold, it is better to
obey than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of
rams." All God wants is our obedience and
willingness to serve Him.
I do know this......that I serve a Great Big
Wonderful God; a God of Love and Miracles!
February 20, 2005 -
Greg Writes
Greetings from Iraq,
Well, I am finally home. We got back this
evening and have been gone from our Company for
almost 2 weeks. We were running our gun trucks
(all brand new up Armor Hummv¡es) as a security
detachment for approximately 60 to 74 big rigs
loaded with everything from Tanks, to Conexes.
Sometimes we were going on 3 to 4 hrs of sleep a
day. I have not had a shower for almost a week,
and am in the same uniform that I was at the
beginning.
Anyway, we had a difficult time in certain
areas, and IED's were being found everywhere. At
one point, we were delayed getting out of one
base by 2hrs, and 150 miles down the road, a
convoy in front of us was hit with an IED, and
then ambushed. We missed it by 3 minutes, and
should have been ahead of them. (WHEW!!) I have
some great pictures, and as soon as my baggage
catches up with me, and I can download my camera
software, I will e-mail them to you. At one
point, our convoy was stopped along the roadside
due to a broken down Iraqi Civilian truck (or as
is commonly referred to as a (Haji Truck)
"Haji¡" is actually not necessarily a derogatory
term, but means a Muslim who has made the Haj
(pilgrimage to Mecca), but is also used for the
bad guys. Anyway, the Hajits (Funny name for the
kids) are all over the place begging for food,
or anything that you will give them. As soon as
they get it, they hide it so other soldiers
don't see it, and they continue to beg until an
adult (parent) shows up, and then they take the
gifts. They are quite smart, and play on
American sympathy.
During this stop however, I was out about 25
meters on foot checking for IED's (Improvised
Explosive Devices) when a couple of young kids
came out telling me "No Ali Babba" (bad guys or
bombs) These kids (1 boy and 2 girls) were
between 4 and 9 years old. They were shy at
first, and didn't ask for a thing, but just
wanted to shake my hand and be around us. The
girls were the cutest thing, covered in dirt
with mussed up hair, and the prettiest eyes.
Then the father showed up, and I thought to
myself¡¦. Here we go, here comes the sales pitch
for trinkets or the begging. Well, this doesn't
happen often (at all) but I was wrong. He stuck
his hand out and just wanted to talk and
befriend us. Approximately 2 hrs later, the
truck was fixed and we were mounting up. The
kids ran up and hugged my leg, and blew me a
kiss, telling us that they loved us in broken
English. We were then on the road again for
several hours. I have to tell you, the Haji
drivers are on their own program. If we stopped
for 2 minutes or 30 minutes we either had to run
the line knocking on the truck doors to wake
them up, or they would start cooking whole meals
with propane stoves in a couple of seconds. They
do whatever they want, when they want. It is
crazy.
Well, I need to go. I have to be debriefed, take
a shower after I cut my clothing off then go to
bed. I will send you more chapters of my life
story in what I can only call the armpit of the
desert. My next letter will tell you about¡¦¡¦
Oh never mind, wait till it comes. Miss you all.
Love ya,
Greg
Fall 2004 - Our Story
Begins - Greg Writes
Hey Mom and Dad,
I am sorry that I haven't written
sooner. We have been sooo busy that I am already
getting burned out. I am a Platoon Sergeant of
30 guys, and they keep me on my toes. I have
just gone over the 20 years in service mark, and
am still loving it. We are currently playing war
games to bring up the training level for our
entry into Iraq, and are going at full pace. I
find myself starting back at the basics to
re-train the guys. I have a very young platoon
with no or little experience, and am focused on
bringing them all home. Sometimes I feel that I
am a little too hard on them because of the
focus. I have become very intense. I am also
training a brand new lieutenant, so my job has
become two fold. I will try to write more often,
and I love you two.
Take care,
Love
Greg
