Subject: A story from somebody that has actually been to Iraq
here's a little bit of insight from somebody that is actually here in Iraq, not some congressman that has only watched CNN and knows nothing of what Iraq is really like. take it how you want. this is for my little friend and my fellow soldiers.
i have a lot of interaction with the kids here in Iraq because of where we do our patrols, and being a medic, a lot of them come to me for their cut and scratches. the boys get a little annoying asking us for everything we have, but they have nothing, so i try not to get to bothered by it. the little girls are so sweet. they live in a culture where they pretty much have to remain silent and take the abuse of their brothers that beat the living hell out of them. there is one girl here that has become like a daughter to me. Every time we go to her area, she comes and stands next to me and wont leave my side until we leave. she doesn't speak any English, and my Arabic isn't that great, so its a silent understanding between the 2 of us. she knows that i wont let anything happen to her and i enjoy her company. She's such a little sweetie. she just stands there like an abused puppy, never going more than 4 feet away, eating whatever candy i bring her and watching us. she was getting picked on by a few boys about her age the first time we went in the area so i stopped them and did my job as a medic and fixed her up. i didn't think much of it. usual stuff. but then she just stayed there next to me. and she does it every time she sees us there. it really is sort of sad when we have to leave. she gets a really sad look on her face and its kind of like a knife to the heart. i used to think that everyone in this country was just out to kill us and hated us. i thought they were all just savage uneducated slobs. after some of my experiences. this one most of all, I've come to realize they just want to be safe and happy, like everyone else in the world. so please, pass this story on to anyone you know, let the world know that we aren't out here trying to be war heroes, make a name for our selves or anything of the sort. we are here to help people like this little girl that i call Cindy, because they cant all help themselves. sometimes it takes a big brother, a friend, a father figure, or a stranger to give you a little boost every now and then to help you where you cant help your selves. so please pass this on. and thanks for supporting us in the way you do. not many people will even return an email from an old friend in high school just saying hey lookin' for that old football buddy to have someone to talk to back home, because he is in Iraq and all people see now is CNN and how we are "terrorizing" Iraq. I'm lucky i have my wife and family. but not all of us are so lucky. we just want someone back home to care about all of us, just like these kids want someone to care about them. i think that is why they come to us and hang out with us where ever we go. they just want to feel that feeling of comfort and safety that they know we try and guarantee. I'm sure somebody that gets this will tear this apart and find a way to make it negative. i hope they do. that only gives me more happiness every time i get to meet another Cindy and brighten her day and everyone else's day that hears about her. thank you all. and please realize the real reason we are here. you don't know until you've been here. don't act like you know everything about a place you've never been. i was guilty of it before i got here. its a complete change of heart when you get some of the great experiences i have already gotten. don't get me wrong. there are rough times. insurgents are still there. but not everyone here hates America. CNN just shows that because they don't know the difference between good journalism, and a pile of dog shit.
SPC Scott Garrett
medic 101st
|