An Unbelievable Service

On one of my more slow days during the week, I was searching for something interesting to watch on the t.v. I decided to buy a movie on On Demand. The Hurt Locker to be exact. With all the Oscar buzz about this film, I thought it prudent to check it out so I’d have something interesting to discuss at upcoming parties and such. The movie was really interesting on a number of fronts for me- more info at http://thehurtlocker.com/. I think if I had seen this movie prior to August 2009, I wouldn’t have found it as impactful. But, I was fortunate enough to travel to Germany and stay on an army base or “post” as it is referred to by the service people and talk with several young men and women who are currently in the service of Uncle Sam. I have always respected those who sign up to serve their country and wondered what drives certain people into that life path. Bravery, patriotism, passion, adventure…being all they can be? Who knows but God bless them.

The young men and women I chatted with this summer have really stayed in my mind. They were all getting tattooed at the time I was informally interviewing them and were very open with me about their experiences. Of the soldiers I spoke with, none of them had voted in the most recent historic presidential election and knew virtually nothing about the new Commander-in-Chief. The man who would be making decisions about the war they were fighting in. They told me it really didn’t matter to them who was in office – there would always be a war in the world somewhere that the U.S. would need to be involved in. Their ages ranged from 19 to 26 and most had been married and were in some form of separation or divorce from their spouse. They had seen some of the worst things imaginable associated with the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When they told me these stories, their eyes would glaze over like they were shifting into a mode that allowed them to safely access the memories. They had seen killings, had killed…men, women, kids. They had seen families destroyed. And none of them could tell me why we were at war with the countries we were fighting. If I would not have gone on that trip, I wouldn’t have known about the term “Hodgie” used in reference to the Iraqis. Even though the soldiers use this derogatory term, some of them expressed their empathy for the Iraqi people referring to them as “very nice people.”

It scared me to think these babies haven’t even started to begin living life, tasting life and they are driving trucks across land masses riddled with bombs. One soldier told me how he had to drive through a line of kids who had interlocked their hands on a road to block their path. The kids had been directed to do this as kids are often used as dispersions, war weapons – they are expendable. These young soldiers are already suffering from both physical and emotional pain. Heatstrokes, back pain, war injuries, PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) and thoughts of suicide are more common than we civilians can even fathom. This massive pain many of them deal with and hide away at such a young age.

They stand on a wall, drive a truck, shoot a gun for many of us who don’t understand their sacrifice. I certainly didn’t understand it at all to the degree I realize now. When I was listening to them talk, I thought “Somebody needs to tell these stories.” I’m so glad there are movies like The Hurt Locker to bring this reality a little bit closer to home.