An American Soldier

Friends;

It's been a quiet week in Lake Woebegone. or actually at COB Speicher, IRAQ. My travel plans had originally included one last trip to FOB Marez but such a trip was not necessary since our chapel is being packed up and sent down here. Without travel my life has settled down to a routine but that will go away as I will be traveling to Al Udeid this weekend for a meeting with the senior leaders of the deployment. I am posting a picture of my last trip, I am wearing my IBA (vest-helmet etc.) and am riding in a C-17 which is a luxury liner here in Iraq.

I am putting a course together for the deployed military members I serve. It is called, "Non-Violent Communication" and was created by Dr. Marshall Rosenberg. It is a wonderful model for communication and I am hoping it will be helpful for those who are deployed here. I used this model for my "Practicing Peace" course I offered during lent last spring in Wichita.

A high point of my deployment so far was a concert we had last night here in our little Red Horse Compound. It was a hot dusty night, with helicopters flying in the distance and the 101st Airborne Stag Band played for us for about 2 hours. It was so refreshing. I am able to see now how refreshed our troops are by USO tours. It gives you a taste of home. The band is only here another 2 weeks and they are headed for home. The Army stays deployed for one year so they are ready to go. One of the songs they sang was deeply moving to me. Here are the lyrics:

Artist/Band: Keith Toby
Lyrics for Song: American Soldier
Lyrics for Album: Shock'n Y'all
(Toby Keith/Chuck Cannon)

I'm just tryin' to be a father, raise a daughter and a son
Be a lover to their mother, everythin' to everyone
Up and at 'em bright and early, I'm all business in my suit
Yeah I'm dressed up for success, from my head down to my boots
I don't do it for money, there's bills I that I can't pay
I don't do it for the glory, I just do it anyway
Providing for our future's, my responsibility
Yeah I'm real good under pressure, being all that I can be
And I can't call in sick on Mondays when the weekend's been too strong
I just work straight through the holidays, and sometimes all night long
You can bet that I stand ready, when the wolf growls at the door
Hey I'm solid, hey I'm steady, hey I'm true down to the core.
And I will always do my duty no matter what the price
I've counted up the cost, I know the sacrifice
Oh and I don't want to die for you, but if dyin's asked of me
I'll bear that cross with honor, cause freedom don't come free.
I'm an American Soldier an American
Beside my brothers and my sisters, I will proudly take a stand
When liberty's in jeopardy, I will always do what's right
I'm out here on the front lines, sleep in peace tonight
American Soldier, I'm and American, Soldier.
An American Soldier an American
Beside my brothers and my sisters, I will proudly take a stand
When liberty's in jeopardy, I will always do what's right
I'm out here on the front lines, sleep in peace tonight
American Soldier, I'm and American, an American, an American, Soldier.

It struck me as I heard this song that we are here with the army. We work with them, we eat with them and last night they entertained us. The dusty duty we perform is for the well being of our nation and our world. Many said to me before I deployed, I don't agree with our being in Iraq but I support you. Such sentiment rings hollow for me. I live to support a cause and I have seen what Americans are doing over here. It is not just combat operations, it is nation building. If we do not prevail here, do you think radical Islam will leave us alone? Do you think they will say, okay, they left, now we can all live in peace. Or will they see it as a victory and move all the more swiftly to carry the fight to our home shores? They are determined, remember the flights form England to the US that we planned to undermine our engagement here. The magnificent isolation of our nation is no longer an option. We live in a world where a few are able to use technology to impose their will on the majority.

GOD bless you all and GOD bless the young Americans deployed to this Area of Operations, GOD bless their families and their communities!

Building Roads

Friends;

I am writing from Al Udeid Airbase where I just completed a needs assessment for the group that is working here. Al Udied is our logistical hub, that is, it is the place where all the equipment needed to do construction in a forward deployed location flows out of. this place is one that is very friendly and welcoming to Americans. Many of the women down town in Doha wear the berka which is a total covering except for the eyes. It is quite hot here and humid compared to Iraq which is hot and dry, much like the American southwest. My assistant Janet and I are headed back to Iraq soon and look forward to our work there. As we are halfway through the deployment many are feeling the strain. One senior NCO told me that 50% of the Red Horse members who are deployed will get divorced when they arrive home. many of the full time military members here have deployed numerous times and one young man shared with me today that he has only been home to share time with his six year old two of those six years. This is one reason why I feel the service I provide here is significant. having a stable home, church and marriage I am able to be a resource for these dedicated young Americans. I a attaching a couple of pictures to this post. One is of our helicopter ride from FOB Sharona to Bagram. Janet and I were the only ones in the aircraft other than the aircrew. I also got a shot of our road crew headed out on the job making a road in the rural area of Afghanistan. I can't share any details abut this road but suffice it to say it is a significant undertaking. It is hard to describe the deep gratitude I feel for all the prayer and kind words that have been offered in support of my work here. From my family who think that this is about "Being a credit" to my fantastic congregation charging in to the fall program to my many friends and colleagues. I thank GOD for you! GOD keep us all in peace!!

Blessings

DAVE

Bagram

Friends;

We are preparing to make our way back to Iraq and COB Speicher. A friend asked why it was that I was moving around so much. I apologize for that lack of clarity. I am the chaplain for the Red Horse Squadron which is the combat engineer arm of the Air Force Civil Engineers. Red Horse is a theater wide asset, which means we are working projects across CENTCOM which includes Iraq, Afghanistan and many other areas. We have two teams in Afghanistan, one in Al Udeied, QARTAR, and three in Iraq with one new mission starting up. I must admit that the travel gives me a unique perspective on our involvement in this part of the world. I am including pictures here of the Bagram Air Base at dawn as we prepared to come here to FOB Sharona. I also have a picture of a memorial area at Sharona that has sunflowers! The thought, "Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas any more,..." has crossed my mind many times, but I was caught up for just a moment with those sunflowers, the Kansas state flower! There is another picture of my assistant Janet and the assistant who is working here,Spec. 4 Amy Justice. She has been wonderful in supporting our ministry here. I preached twice on Saturday which felt good. I realize anew each time I worship how vital the worshiping community is to my spiritual life. I truly miss the rich beauty of my congregation in Kansas. I was talking to one of our young engineers today and he calculated out that today is exactly the half way point in our deployment. It will be good to return home, with many stories and a deepening compassion for the children of GOD living in these desert lands. GOD bless you in your journey, thank you for looking in on my journey, GOD bless you on your journey!

DAVE

Afghanistan

9 August 2006

I am writing from Bagram, Afghanistan. My initial feeling when I arrived here was that I am living a documentary. This is my 9th change of location since I arrived in this Area of Operations! What a gift it is to be able to perceive our great nation's work in so many locations. I am posting a few pictures of our latest adventures. One piciture is of the interior of a C-17 aircraft, my new best friend for travel in the AOR. Janet and I traveled to Kandahar and then on here to Bagram. Bagram is like paradise compared to Iraq and Kuwait. The base is surrounded by mountains and sits at 4400 feet elevation. It is why they used to call Goodland, Kansas a mountain climate. I have an industrial golf cart for transportation which is really fun to drive around. The housing is in temporary quarters which is not as good as I have had and not as bad as I have had.

I will be doing a needs assessment here tomorrow, to gage how our military members are doing in regard to the deployment. I have also done these at COB Speicher, GOB Marez and have been asked to do one in AL Udeid on my way back to Iraq.

The final picture I am posting (or my post mistress, daughter Heidi) is a picture of a little patient in the Egyptian hospital here on base. The Red Horse deployed members here at Bagram have a humanitarian mission to this hospital. Afghanistan is one of the poorest nations in the world but all of its people are children of GOD and our neighbors. GOD bless the children! Many blessings to you! More later!

DAVE

Kansas-

My Ch Assistant Janet received a flag from her state! So now our deployment is represented by two states. It is interesting that both flags are connected to stars. The lone star state and "To the stars through difficulties". One of the things I have noticed in this deployment is the clarity of the stars on a deep desert evening. I look for familiar constellations such as the big dipper and it is comforting to me that I am able to discern it. It creates a continuity with home. We all live under the same sky, we share a fragile world. Stars to America are symbols of freedom and unity. Each state has a star that joins the others in a union, conceived in leberty and dedicated to the proposition that all people are created equal. The stars and stripes fly over Iraq this day, not a a symbol of conquest but as a sign of hope. There is hope that our nation can help our Iraqi neighbors to find a way to live in peace with justice. These state flags are also a sign of the unity we find as we serve here. Young Americans from all over the nation and our territories are present here standing for freedom. Let freedom ring! Blessings to you!

DAVE