I went to do a round of hospital visits at the U.S. Theater Hospital this morning. When I checked in at the ICU I was told there was one patient who was awake. I approached his bed and the nurse introduced me to the wounded marine and his escort. The young marine was covered with a blanket but it was clear that his injuries were in his legs, apparent by the sickening angles made by the thin poles of the devices and tourniquets keeping his legs attached.

As I started chatting with the young marine he was clearly alert and cognizant of the magnitude of his injuries and how he came to be in the hospital. I quickly glanced up at the sheet of paper hanging off of the vitals machine. The piece of paper indicates the cause of a patient's injuries and a detailed list of what those injuries are. In this young marines case, he walked over a dismounted IED.

After the marine and I chatted for a few minutes, I turned to his escort and asked, "So are you guys in the same unit?" I was taken aback to hear, "No ma'ma, I'm his older brother.  This is my first deployment, I've only been here 10 days". Turns out they were both stationed at the same base out here in Afghanistan and when the word came in that his little brother had been hit by an IED, the command gave permission for the older brother to accompany him first to Bagram, then on to Germany and finally to Walter Reed. I could hardly hold back my emotion when he showed me his bed of pillows and towels and blankets, next to his brother gurney so he could stay as close as possible.

But what squeezed my heart even more than the older brother's obvious love for his younger, was the way they both talked about the future. How there was a really good chance the marine would keep his legs and that he would walk again some day. And well, if he had to lose one leg than at least it would just be below the knee and if he had to lose them both, well he knew other guys that were worse off, but really, he was going to walk again because there was a really good chance they could save his legs.

My God, to hear both this marine and his brother so positive about the future, about how the marine was going to try and stay in the military, even if they did take his legs, and how they joined the marines because they loved the idea it was the most physically difficult branch, I couldn't help but think to myself how lucky and honored I was to even meet these two incredible brothers. They are representative of all that is honorable and brave and noble in the U.S. military and what makes every second of this job worthwhile.

I hope this post in some small way serves to salute them.

Hi everyone, our Red Cross team in Bagram is safe and well after the attack in Jalalabad. Our thoughts are with the International Committee of the Red Cross team

 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/29/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Well it's official... as the night shifter I'm down to one meal a day.

Effective June 1, midnight chow will be closing base-wide and all 24 hour sandwich bar operations will shut down.

From 9pm to 5:30am the military will be offering no meal to the thousands upon thousands of us who work throughout the night for the mission and the well-being of those deployed to Afghanistan.

There cannot possibly be a more fitting way to celebrate Memorial Day than with the troops in Afghanistan.

Our Red Cross team worked very hard to put an event together so that those living on Bagram could celebrate the day much as they might have in the States. I took the lead on the event which was from 5:30 to 7:30 this evening and truly, the event could not have been a greater success. We had over 300 people in attendance and the greatest possible compliment was from those who said they felt like they were back at home with their friends and family.

The day began for me in true deployment fashion...because I work the night shift I literally had to get up for the event in the middle of my night - 3pm. I walked to the shower latrines only to find that every shower latrine on the camp was closed. Soooo it was a deployment shower for me - washing in the latrine sink :-/

Once I arrived for set up at 4pm, they time started flying by. Dozens of tables and chairs set up, the band arrived, the grills were fired up. We hung Memorial flags signed by schools and previous deployed soldiers. The tables were covered in miniature American flags. Major Eden, the combat stress dog arrived and spent much of the time trying to mangle plastic water bottles. We had tons of food: burgers, hot dogs, chicken, sausages, steak, bread, pastries, fruit salad and then the coup de gras homemade Oreo truffles, fudge and Flavor- Ice pops. I also organized a raffle with some fantastic prizes. To top everything off, the Fire station brought over a fire engine to help us block off the road. I had obtained permission to close off the road in front of our office building so the whole event had the feel of a traditional American block-party.

The event was a smashing success. With over 300 attendees, the line for food was almost 50 people deep for the first hour. The Armed Forces Network film crew showed up and both my team leader and I got to do a radio interview during the event!

Once it started getting dark and people had eaten their fill, they settled down at tables and along the T-walls (cement barriers to protect from shrapnel)  to listen and sing and dance to the band. The night only ended when the band's First Sergeant apologized profusely and said it was time for the band to leave.

It is so easy to forget the significance of Memorial from the comfort of the U.S. when you are untouched by the tragedies of war ... but out here, when you hold the hand of a soldier dying from IED wounds and the next day they are gone, you cannot escape the significance of Memorial Day and the sacrifice of those who die for their country.

 

Delightful start to my Afghan morning (which is actually the evening hours because I work the night shift)...

An IDF (indirect fire - rockets, mortars, grenades) struck while I was in shower. I just spent the last 45 mins in a bunker in only my towel and PJs :-/

Two of my teammates and I at our table at the Bagram Health Fair yesterday. 

My new best friend Major Eden, the Combat Stress Dog

This morning was such a great experience. After I got off shift, I went to the gym and then went to the hospital to make the rounds and drop off invitations to our Memorial Day event.

I went first to the ICU and visited with the patients in the American bay. There was a positively horrific ambush within the last few weeks and several of the wounded went through the Craig hospital at Bagram. Only one is still here, injured from a dismounted IED. Everyday I've visited him I've held his hand and encouraged him to fight and be strong. He is in a drug induced coma with full body paralysis, but I can't help but believe that maybe he knows we are there visiting him. And I fully believe that someone suffering from his injuries would not want to be alone in the ICU.

After the ICU, I made my way to the Ward which contain patients who are not as serious as the ICU. The guys in the Ward are usually awake and eager for conversation and today was no exception. A lot of the guys in the Ward want to talk about why they are in the hospital and their stories and injuries just make you shake your head. One guy was trying to make sense of his experience being hit by an IED and the ground shaking underneath him. All I can hope to do is provide them with a willing listener, because I certainly will never be able to relate to anything they have been through.

Next it was on to the Warrior Restoration Clinic, where the Combat Stress dog lives. I invited all the staff to our event (the Combat Stress dog being the guest of honor after all!) and then I spent the next 30 mins on the floor playing with the pup, a gorgeous Red lab named Maj Eden.

And finally, it was off to the Vet clinic to play with some more puppies... except the Vet clinic primarily see the working dogs - bomb sniffers, narcotics dogs and attack dogs. Today they had Tessa in the clinic, a narcotics and attack dog, who in a nervous frenzy had basically chewed her tail off. She is a German Shepherd and because of her injuries the vets were forced to take the majority of her tail off. Because of her training however, she was also muzzled and sedated for her check up, trained to attack anyone who is not her handler.

The vets allowed to me to sit in on the visits and pet the sedated Tessa (not quite as enjoyable as the blind adoration of the combat stress dog, but it's Afghanistan after all, I will take what I can get! ;-)