Taking a Break

Our new promotee with her "bling."

The ANA sure travel "light."

Afghanistan sunset


"Heater" for pool.

Going for a swim.

Steps to the pool.

My team has had the opportunity to partake in some special occasions recently. It’s nice because for a while you can forget where you are. There are plenty of daily reminders to let us know this isn’t Kansas, so the chance to get away from it for a while is always well received.
Our first opportunity was a BBQ put on by a group of guys that have a camp close to ours. We were invited to hang out, listen to music, and enjoy some good food and good company. We had hamburgers, brats, chicken kabobs, and corn on the cob right off the grill. We also got to go for a swim in their homemade pool made out of a fuel bladder. It was complete with a 12ft deep end, filter system, and very unique heating system. After our Afghan swim we tossed a football around and even broke out a Frisbee! For most this does not sound like a big deal right? Well, for us this was like kicking back in the backyard with some friends. Something we all miss and haven’t done for a while.
The second occasion was a promotion party for one of the Navy people on our team. We had the traditional military ceremony with an Afghan flair to it. We invited our ANA counterparts and interpreters and they gave her some “bling” to go with her promotion. After the ceremony we were invited to feast on authentic Pilipino cuisine at their little compound. This was some of the best food I have had and I had to come to Afghanistan to get it!
I am really glad to be part of this Med ETT. On an average day we exhaust ourselves trying to squeeze out one small improvement over the performance of the previous day. We deal with death and destruction of the human body on a daily basis and still seem to keep our spirits up. It is in no way, shape, or form as fierce as combat, but the elements of danger and stress are still there. My hat is off to the guys out there fighting the fight. That goes for my American brothers in arms and our ANA soldiers. I don’t think the people back home realize how dedicated the ANA soldiers are to riding this country of Taliban trash. I see their war torn bodies come in on helicopters and I see their medical staff work on them every day. They may not be up to American standards in either area, but the look on their faces say that they would really like to be and we are doing our damnedest to show them how.