Almost done...

Pic 1: My gear. Last day and waiting on the helo out of Al Asad.
Pic 2: Back end of the 53. (Helo) And as always, our flag flying over Iraq.

Pic 3: Me, enjoying the deafening noise made by the helo's props. Good times.

Pic 4: Hanging out with a couple of the guys that were out in Rawah with me. The buses behind us took me took us to the flight line to catch our flight out of Kuwait.
Pic 5: My last night in Al Asad and kicking back with a the guys from Det. Everett. I've know the two on the left for my entire reserve career. Great guys, all of them.

I received a phone call from some of the guys. All of the battalion has made it to Mississippi and if everything goes according to plan, everyone will be home by Easter weekend. Right after I received this bit of news, I realized that I had been spending much of my time thinking and worrying about my friends.


Since the war began, my mind would drift to the men and women that were over there. What are they going through? What do they need? When and I am going to go? These thoughts did not go through my mind all of the time, but they are now. I just got back but I think about these things every day, so many times a day. And at the same time, I catch myself thinking, "Did I ever even go over there?" I know that sounds weird, but it does not feel like I was ever gone. I look at my boys, at how much they have grown, my parents look a little older to me, and the baby, my little girl. That is when I realize that, yes, I was gone for almost a year. .