Stories of Afghanistan - The soldier's view

Are you a veteran or know of a veteran's stories? Let us know of your story! Who do you miss? what did you miss doing? What shocked your expectations?

I remember the kids mostly. As we went out on presence patrols, we had to dismount and find the elders for information regarding their schools and suspicious activity. The Pashtun and Dari kids were asking for ooba (water) and shirinee (candy) all the time. I miss speaking pashtu to them, I volunteered for an 80 hour course before the deployment. They were so excited that i knew how to speak with them, even if it was simple baby talk. In my plate carrier (body armour) I had jolly ranchers tucked in the webbing like attatched gear. They always smiled, even without shoes. I had one of the kids show me that the ants in Afghanistan do not bite, but rather run on the desert floor on their tippy toes and stick their butts up in the air.

I was running 3 miles on base once, with my battle buddy Daley. I never knew what happened to daily, miss that old guy. Me and him went out for work outs all the time, pushing ourselves knowing we had to. I used to run alot like this, thinking that if something truly happened and i needed to run for real, i had to be in shape. Well anyways, that one night i was running and a freakin camel spider ran across my feet! I never saw one up close. I tell ya, i never ran 3 miles that fast in my life before!

My first day I remember rain, or was it dust? I couldn't remember. I was coming off of the c130, and I was scared, stepping the first step in a combat zone. I was part of a group who came later than the advanced group. So my unit already had their tents up. It was late and the first thing in my mind was to get my soldiers in bed. I found my LT's door, and woke him up. Apparently they just got tired from a mission and told me to find a spot, if there was one. The tent was packed, and there was only 3 spots left. 2 in the middle and 1 in the corner, by the A.C./generator. I put my soldiers into the 2 best ones, while me being an E5 sergeant, I took the worst. It was only half a room, noisy as all get out. The A.C. was loud and badly worked. All we had was wood to sleep on, we had to build our furniture during the off days. I built me a Parsons working table. My door I decorated with stickers sent from home. The home away from home.

I remember the jingle trucks. When i had to work the ECP (Entry Control Point), I had to check all vehicles coming in and out of base. There was this one Afghan, he drove a trike (Like a moped but with 3 wheels). He modified the trike with a store! He built a storage box sitting on the back, and the height and width of the box seem to not be able to stay on the trike, but somehow it stayed. It was filled with fruits, snacks, and gifts so he could sell to the soldiers and supply to his stores on base. We called them hadji shops. My favorite jingle truck came with local pomegranates and sohan cookies. The sohan cookies were AMAZING! You had to eat them with hot chia tea and sitting around with friends/family. The cookies were made with local zaffron, rose wetter, flour, sugar, pistachios, coconuts, and other secret ingredients. I cant find them in the states, I mean, you can find them but they are not authentic.