Monday, October 10, 2011

Notes From Afghanistan Part 7

It rained yesterday. Not a drizzle type of rain but a full on thunderstorm that continued for most of the morning and has returned again today. We had been told the rainy season begins in December, so the rain was a bit of a surprise, though a pleasant one. One Marine commented on how the rain made everything smell and feel clean around here. I kind of have to agree with him. It smelled and felt like a walk through some woods back home in the springtime. It has left a lot of mud to deal with over the next few days as well as showed us some leaks in the chapel and other buildings and tents. But, it was different and unexpected and it showed us we are close to leaving as the rainy season should signify our exit from Afghanistan.

It was also a means to break the monotony around here. At times it feels like groundhog day. We fall into the same routine day after day and the rain forced us to stay inside a bit more or change our routines in other ways for the day which was a refreshing way to snap us out of our current ruts. Something we could all benefit and learn from as we head back and will get into different ruts and routines back home.

The guys continue to do well out here and are looking forward to going home. That is the #1 topic of conversation during my visits with them. They are dreaming about their first meal upon return to the states and what they plan to do while on post-deployment leave (most have a plan to do nothing for a few days or weeks). I just wonder what they will remember about this deployment.

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