Entry #6: September 9, 2005

Wackernheim, Rhineland-Pfalz, Germany (just west of Mainz and the Rhine River)

McCully Barracks

I’ve been putting off writing this entry for a reason. I returned home from CMTC this past Friday, September 2. Shawn, Leah Sandmann (the Executive Officer of my company) and I were out enjoying a great dinner and friendship. I’m glad we had that one night hanging out, worry free, just enjoying life, because it all changed so fast. Walking back to Leah’s apartment with Shawn to drop her off, we saw Leah’s best friend from West Point (who works in our battalion) with the Chaplain. A simple “Oh no” slipped from Leah’s mouth and I could tell her heart sunk cause I swear I heard it fall to the sidewalk. Her boyfriend, soon-to-be fiancé Derek, had been killed in a firefight in Afghanistan against Taliban fighters seeking to disrupt the upcoming elections. She had been talking all night about whether she and Derek should go to Greece or the Canary Islands when he would have arrived for to visit her for his Rest and Recuperation leave in October. I didn’t know him, but I know Leah and she has been like an older sister to me since my arrival in Germany. One of the worst sounds in the world is the sound of a woman crying over the death of her loved one. I remember Grandma at Granddaddy’s funeral, but he was old and had lived a full life. Derek, unfortunately, hadn’t been given that. These are the times when you ponder the ins and outs of war, why men fight, why war is necessary, is our cause just, and whether or not it is worth it the sacrifice. Not everyone agrees with our nation’s current foreign policy, but there are men greater than me whom we elected to those elevated positions and I trust that they will keep our nation on a straight and true path. Sometimes sacrifice is a burden that is carried by men and women who believe in something bigger than themselves. To paraphrase our president, we shall take the fight to the terrorists. Derek took the fight to them, and though he gave the greatest sacrifice, he went out a patriot and a solid American. I also like to think he sent his fair share to meet their Maker.