Notes From Afghanistan Part 4

I don't realize just how busy my life is out here until I see how infrequently I am posting and updating people back home. I rarely get a block of time to sit at the computer and compose some thoughts and when I do get a good chunk of time I am usually on Facebook for the sole purpose of posting photos for the families of my Marines and sailors. And on the slow connections we have out here it takes about an hour for every 10-15 photos.

So, it seems I haven't posted in over a month about what is going on out here and the last time I posted while I was at Camp Dwyer for a conference. And as it would happen I am posting again not from Camp Dwyer, but back at Geronimo after the most recent conference I attended. It has been quite a busy month, especially seeing how we have had two other chaplains come out for a visit, one to check in on me and see how I am doing and the other was the Catholic priest to come out and provide mass for the Catholics in the battalion. He did a great job and I received nothing but positive feedback from the guys that attended his services. The priest held 5 services in one day amidst traveling all around the area to visit every company position so all would have a chance to take in a service if possible. It was during that trip, because I was focused on making sure a fellow chaplain could visit all my guys, that I realized just how much chaplains accomplish each day. Plus, I am looking at my calendar for this month and am amazed at the lack of white space due to the travel schedule for myself and the RP.

We finally got out to Alpha Company, who are working for another battalion, and spent a few days there to visit and check in on the guys. Hopefully the schedule allows for that to become a routine monthly occurrence. They, like all the other guys, are doing well and are doing good things in their area though they may not fully appreciate the good they accomplish each day. The companies around here also continue to impress and the other chaplains who visit remark on their spirits and their professionalism.

Part of my job lately has been to provide Ramadan awareness training for all the Marines and sailors, especially as I travel anyways it made sense for me to give that training. I am looking forward to seeing how the Afghans observe the upcoming holy month and am confident that I will learn a great deal about their culture from watching them observe Ramadan. I have already learned a great deal through providing the training and talking with Muslims about the holiday and what all that entails and how it affects them each year. It has been eye opening living so immersed in another culture, it makes me think that I am on less of a deployment and more of a long-term full immersion mission trip. Especially as my eyes have become wide open to the humanitarian need out here.

One thought before I go: I am amazed and humbled by the generosity of the American public. We are constantly receiving care packages in the mail. The last two mail drops have included about 45 packages each time for the general use of the battalion. I am doing all I can to get them out to the companies as soon as we can find space on the convoys because I will run out of room if we don't. For those who have sent stuff, thank you so much as what you send gets to us right as we need those items and it keeps the supply fresh and flowing out to the men.

Care Package Request List for July 2011

Sorry it is almost mid-month before getting this out. We were busy sorting the love you have sent us already as well as getting out and about with the Marines and getting the Peachtree Road Race set up, etc. I have updated this based on what the guys are asking for and what we are running low on.

Care Package Needs July 2011

The ones in bold are especially needed right now


Afghan Children: School starts here in September, so we're trying to get the supplies early
Coloring Books—Culturally appropriate-Animals, etc
Text Books (English and Math)
Any kind of study aids
Shoes
Socks
Crayons
Colored Pencils(Solid Wood kind)
Pencils(Solid Wood kind)
Notebooks and Paper
Backpacks
Soccer Balls (Deflated)
Kick balls (Deflated)

Marines:

Socks (Brown, Green, Black)
Foot Powder
Razors (We are especially low on these)
Horseshoes
Shampoo
Body Wash
Candy (Jolly Ranchers, Starburst, Werther’s, Twizzlers, BlowPops) This gets to the kids as well
Beef Jerky
Drink Mix (Single packets of Propel, Propel Zero, Crystal Light, Gatorade, Kool Aid, Coffee, Tea, etc)
Baby Wipes
Gum
Chex Mix, Trail Mix
Granola Bars
Sunscreen
Hand Lotion
Food spices, flavorings and condiments
Tuna Packages

Chapel and Chaplain:

Letters from children to decorate the chapel and dining halls
Pancake Mix (Just add water kind only)—Will try to do pancake dinners in the field
Syrup
Chex Mix-Turtle and Honey Nut Flavors

Anything you want to send from the above lists. If I don’t use it, it will get put in the general pot

If anyone can spare the cost of shipping, the guys are really asking about horseshoes. I don't have that many sets and all they really need are the horseshoes, we have plenty of stakes and other items to create the pits for them to play with.

I thank you ahead of time for anything you send and I am truly grateful for everyone who has already sent packages. RP and I try to reply to each group of packages you send, but if we forget to send an email once we get the packages I do apologize as we get pulled in many different directions. The packages are used and appreciated by the Marines and sailors we have in our area.

Mail Any packages to:

Chaplain Russ Ferguson
1/9 H Co S-1
Unit 74095
FPO AE 09510-4095

Peachtree in Afghanistan

Participants lined up at the start of the race (Photo taken by one of our civilian contractors)

In my short time here with the Marines and Sailors of 1/9 I have been looking for something that would really spark their interest. We planned a Superbowl party this past February with limited attendance, despite offering alcohol (and designated drivers and a duty van). We get little to no interest in other activities we plan to take their minds off the job and give them a bit of a break from the grind of being Marines. Until yesterday. There are about 400 or so Marines, Sailors and civilians on our FOB. We had 100 register to run the Peachtree Road Race yesterday morning. Who would have guessed that the best attended event of the chaplain would be a 6.8 mile (our loop didn’t permit the normal 10k distance) run, at 0530, in the heat of July, in Afghanistan. It amazes me that the guys turned out in such numbers for a race. I was completely surprised. It must have been the idea that for an hour or so they were able to get off the FOB and be in unison with people in Atlanta in running a 10K with 60,000 other people.

The race organizers at the Peachtree are simply amazing. I have run the event in Atlanta four times previously and enjoyed each one of them. I remembered a few years ago that they were honoring those serving overseas by allowing them the opportunity to run the race while deployed. So, in March I started doing some research to see if they still offered that deal to the guys. The website doesn’t advertise the program, so I was worried it was a one time deal at the beginning of our involvement over here. I decided to call the office and see if they still had that program. And boy do they still have the program. They mailed me 150 race numbers specially made for those serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait along with 150 shirts of varying sizes instead of one or two sizes (which the guys really appreciated), and a 14.5 foot banner (now hanging in our MWR tent) which was identical to the start banner with the addition of “Afghanistan Division” in the lower center portion.

All of that came in a few weeks ago and I was sworn to secrecy about the shirts and told we couldn’t post any photos until after the race had begun in Atlanta. This wasn’t hard as very few people have permission to post photos from over here. I started taking names earlier in the week and it was going slow at first and then the momentum built up to the 100 that ran it yesterday. We got placed some water on the course but I didn’t need to as some of the contractors that work in the chow hall took it upon themselves to pass out water to those running. And we had another group out there for the hour or so cheering guys along on the run. Two civilians stayed out on the course taking photos of the guys running. Marines that didn’t run were also poking their heads out of offices and tents talking with the runners and taking photos. One other highlight was that I called into the race start line at 0530 our time which was 2100 Atlanta time and they started the race for us on Peachtree Street. A retired Army officer gave me the countdown and they fired a starting gun and I heard some loud cheering in the background. They took some photos of that start and will email them to us. They also mentioned that CNN was filming the start as well. Everything that the people of the Peachtree did as well as the support from those not running gave this the feel of a major race and for an hour we were running the streets of Atlanta.



What I've Learnned About Freedom in Afghanistan

Tomorrow being the 4th of July, I have done some reflecting on what it means to have freedom and what that really looks like. Living out here has shown me a great deal that I may never be able to fully articulate. One thing that has struck me while out here is the idea of freedom and how we may miss what it really means back home. Out here we are truly seeing it in action. I know that there may not be as much “action” as many had hoped for out here. Personally, I’m just fine with that. I don’t need a Combat Action Ribbon or a Purple Heart to prove this was a worthwhile deployment. I think the mission we have allows us to really see freedom start to take hold in a country that hasn’t known it for a long time. This is something that is hard to communicate to young Marines, but I am trying my best to open their eyes to the importance of looking for places to crack the door on freedom just a bit.

We tend to take our freedoms in America for granted because most of us have spent our entire lives in America and enjoy the freedoms that are guaranteed by the Constitution and defended by people such as the Walking Dead. Sometimes this allows us to overlook what freedom truly looks like. Out here our main job is to provide a bit of breathing room for people to experience freedom for the first time. And we see it in what we would consider simple and ordinary actions. But, those things are huge steps here in Afghanistan.

The individuals who don the uniforms of the Army or Police out here have taken a huge gamble that they and their families will remain safe. People target them specifically to make an example of what happens when you choose freedom over a regime of terror. They have made a choice in their new freedom to extend that freedom to their fellow Afghan citizens. The linguists that allow us to communicate on patrols and in shuras have made similar choices and want to see freedom of choice spread among this country. Some of these linguists may never be able to return home for fear of retribution. The religious leaders of the Afghan military are looking for ways to allow for a freedom of religion, something that the Muslim faith holds in high regard, to take hold in this country after 30 plus years of intolerance. Girls are going to school for the first time in a generation despite the possibility that their school may be destroyed because a minority of people feels they don’t deserve an education.

Most Marines would say this wasn’t their ideal adventure in Afghanistan, the adventure of helping a people discover and cultivate the freedoms we take for granted is an adventure that will provide stories for a lifetime. It will also provide mental images that will never leave them such as the smile on a child’s face going to school, when I saw a young girl clutching her school books and full of excitement coming home from another day at school. Members of the Afghan Army and Police force paying such minute attention to the Marines such as a younger brother does to the older, wiser siblings. As we celebrate July 4th and the courage of our nation’s founding fathers to make a difficult choice and pledge their sacred honor for freedom and liberty, look for the many signs of budding freedom in this country. You might have to look beyond the nightly news as I know that the stories of everyday Afghans gets set aside for the death counts. Help encourage people back home and those you know overseas to make more room for that freedom to grow and change this country into something amazing and unique.

I won’t lie, I had questions about what we are doing over here before we left, and to an extent I still do but on a different level. I want us to do so much more and we can to help a people who want freedom to make choices about them and their families. The people over here aren’t much different from us and have the same hopes and fears for their lives and the lives of those they love. It took time for freedom to take hold in America after the Declaration of Independence. And it took even longer for other countries to recognize the freedom that we offered. It took the US 13 years to draft a form of government that we all agreed on and we have been changing it for the last 235 years. It will take time over here as well. We have to look past our instant gratification culture and understand that something that will last over here will take many more years before there is a stable foundation. But I am convinced that it will be worth it and that the majority of Afghans long for a stable foundation to rebuild their lives and country on after 30+ years of war.