David Hardt from Fort Lewis's 3rd Stryker Brigade sent us this report before he went home on R&R...
By David Hardt
Even though I have been on plenty patrols, it just seemed like this one really was making me a little on the edge. As I prepped my gear, I realized that I was just fiddling with my gear and getting nowhere. I lay on the bed and closed my eyes and decided to take a nap. Sgt. Smith came by to make sure we had all of our equipment for the night mission. Since it was a new squad Sgt. Smith wanted to make sure that we started out on the right foot by doing a group pre-combat inspection. In the past I have always been early to the truck because leaving the barracks early gave me some time alone to do some soul searching. There are days when I just stand off to the side away from everyone just taking in the moment. Everyone has their own way of going about a patrol. Some listen to music; some just sit on their beds, kick up their feet and stare at the walls. You see the daily rituals that some of the men don’t even know they do. It’s now just a process. I remember my first deployment here. I was rather religious, and I would do my prayer of protection. After I found myself practically sprawled out in the middle of the street in Tal Afar after an ambush I quickly adjusted my ritual. I started writing. Didn’t seem like I was getting anywhere with the man upstairs at that moment in life.
Once we all showed up at the truck, Staff Sgt. Rine gave us the first instructions. “Get this truck setup for combat configuration.” We all went to work getting everything ready. Granted all the trucks have the same layout, but each squad sets up their truck so they know where everything is. After we worked collectively to get everything squared away, we took a seat and awaited the daily brief. When you haven’t had a great deal of conversation with the men who are in your squad you really don’t know what to talk about. So we just sat there, and there was a librarylike silence. I couldn’t stand it, so I started the conversation, go figure. “So what’s your plan when you get home?” Lance and John gave their plans, and then I shared mine. After a little while we had a good solid conversation going. Just like in every working friendship it’s important to know what someone dreams about doing or what their goals are just in case things get ugly and those words can be used for encouragement or direction.
See the rest of David's report here.
Comments