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Tuesday, January 06, 2004

# Posted 12:31 AM by Ariel David Adesnik  

A SOLDIER'S WORDS FROM AFGHANISTAN: The following is a letter sent by an American officer in Afghanistan to his friends and family, including myself. It needs no commentary because it speaks for itself.
Orgun, Afghanistan
24 December 200[3]

Dear Friends and Family:

Happy Holidays! As you read this, I will no doubt be smoking a celebratory cigar with my brothers-in-arms. We are at the halfway point of our deployment; only 4-5 more months and we will be home at last. As the Grateful Dead so aptly said, “It has been a long, strange trip.” I will be feasting on Christmas with my friends and soldiers. As a special treat, the unit airlifted Starbucks frappucinos! Little things like that make a huge difference to morale here. One great thing about being deployed is that it brings a heightened appreciation of otherwise mundane objects. A mug of good hot chocolate, a few strands of Christmas lights, and a surprise shipment of O’Douls make home seem a little closer.

A brief summary of events over the last couple of months…

We spent our first two months in Afghanistan outside the large town of Gardez. As a relatively quiet sector, Gardez was a great place to train on new equipment and bond as a team. We played a lot of volleyball, entertained a host of VIPs, and enjoyed working with one of the Army’s newest concepts- a Provincial Reconstruction Team composed of Army engineers, civil affairs experts, and military police. I escorted them on a fantastic trip to Ghazni where the governor put us up at his opulent guesthouse. Sleeping in a real bed and using a private bathroom seemed like the height of luxury! During our stay there, General Schoomaker, General Meyers, and Christine Amanpour all made visits. Secretary Rumsfeld pinned my captain’s bars on me in September. After two wonderful months in Gardez making friends with interpreters, patrolling relatively safe villages, and administering veterinary care to unfriendly camels, my platoon flew to Shkin on September 26th.

Soon after arriving at what one Army spokesman called “the most evil place in Afghanistan,” my platoon was involved in the largest firefight since Operation Anaconda in March 2002. During a battle that raged intermittently for almost 12 hours, we destroyed close to 40 “anti-coalition militants,” but suffered one very painful American casualty. PFC [name deleted], a 19-year-old soldier in my platoon, died from sniper fire while cresting a hill near Lozano Ridge. Coping with the loss of one of our own was the toughest mission my platoon faced during the last 5 months. Men cited for their bravery in the fight were torn by guilt and self-doubt and many still suffer from nightmares. Fortunately for the platoon, we immediately returned to the front lines after a brief period of mourning. After a few weeks of relative calm, we had another big fight south of Shkin on October 25th. We lost no men in our platoon, but had several friendly casualties in a sister unit. Again, my men impressed me with their courage under fire and professional competence. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to see my men change over 9 months- watching them train last spring and then execute the same drills with deadly efficacy in combat. Leading my men in combat has been the most satisfying and challenging experience in my career.

The Army doesn’t like to keep its captains as platoon leaders and I was tagged in early November to become the Battalion Adjutant. I moved to a third firebase, at Orgun, to take over the human resources management for the task force’s 900 personnel. I now spend long hours proofreading award citations, managing finance problems, and assisting the Battalion Commander with officer evaluations and other special projects. I miss being with my men, but find a lot of satisfaction ensuring that the personnel system works for them. The office is certainly the most interesting one I’ve worked in- an old Soviet headquarters complete with bullet holes in the walls. It’s very gratifying to ensure that they receive awards for their actions under fire. I pinned medals on 16 of my men today and expect to pin several Bronze Stars for Valor in the near future.

I keep sane in the office by escaping to the gym to lift weights and to use the rowing machine I convinced Concept2 to donate to my platoon. Whenever I need a break from staff life, I can walk down to where my old platoon lives and hang out with them. I’m glad to have them as a family away from home. The food here is better than at Fort Drum and we are doing our part to sustain the bootleg DVD industry. I’ve been spending a lot of time learning Russian and Hindi and finishing the crate of books I brought with me from the states. I now have daily internet access and some phone use.

The sting of being extended an additional 90 days was made much more bearable by the stacks of letters and boxes I’ve received from all of you. I have been overwhelmed by the support you’ve given me during this deployment and hope to thank you all in person soon after returning home. Please keep writing and sending pictures- responding is one of my favorite distractions from work.

Until next time,
[name deleted]
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