stars in the sky

I was never really able to see much of the sky back in the states. We just had too many lights. And it just seemed like there was some sort of lining covering the sky from us. I could never get a clear view back home.

Here in Iraq, though, the sky is amazing. Late at night when I head out for my nightly trip to the lavatory, I would glance up and I would see specks over light everywhere. The stars are always out. I was told that in the summer, you can even see more stars. The morning cold and the afternoon heat don't seem so bad when the evening breeze comes after. And I stood there from time to time looking up, wondering if I will ever see another sky like this.

Like the guy in "Three Seasons," said, there are 4 and 5 stars hotels all around the world, but where I am right now, I'm sleeping in a thousand stars hotel.

People may call this undeveloped, third world even; but for a place like this, it sure is beautiful at night.

This is your guardian angel brief

Nothing introduces you more to war than as soon as you hit the combat zone, your sergeant issues you 60 rounds and orders you to "shoot to kill."

I haven't fired the rounds yet; the situations haven't warrant it.

But I get anxious sometimes.

I was given the task along with several other Marines when we first got here to make sure that the bus drivers driving us to where we were staying didn't try anything stupid. We were the guards for our convoy. My Sergeant's exact words were, "There are no warning shots, shoot to kill."

I listened patiencely and wondered if I would actually have to fire at someone that night. Luckily, I didn't have to. I was prepared though. I held the magazine tightly in my hand and kept an eye on the driver at all times. I had to fight off exhaustion and sleepiness all the while maintaining a very keen alertness on where we were going. I glanced over to the other guard from time to time. He was intently focused as well. It was times like this that I am reminded of that scene in "A Few Good Men," when Nicolson's character tells Cruise's character that people die when Marines don't follow orders.

I hope that doesn't happen anytime here.

You only live once

I overheard someone say, "You only live once," today at the Rec Center. The phrase triggered something in my mind. I stopped, turned around, and for a moment thought about those words.

I remember coming to America like it was yesterday. I remember the first day of class with perfect clarity. I remember eating my first hamburger. I remember these and many more and the more I delve into these memories I am reminded of how fast my life has gone by. Twenty-one years old and trying to keep up with my youth.

I don't want to wake up one night in the middle of Iraq wondering about how my life has turned out. You only live once. I want to make sure that this life is one worth living, but more importantly, one worth dying for.