Somewhere in Afghanistan is a young, tired soldier clinging to a cold, wet rock, trying to get some sleep. His back is more than likely up against his buddy’s back so they can “watch” both ways while they catnap. That’s the way Special Forces soldiers sleep in the field. Even though they can hear the distant thunder of allied aircraft, there’s no real assurance it could save them if necessary. And yet, they are comforted by it.
Overhead, somewhere else in the region are air force and navy pilots and crew, flying their missions, their bombs and rockets being guided in by the Special Forces soldier’s laser pointers on the ground, hoping like hell they hit their targets and miss civilians.
On the ships the flight crews eagerly await their aircraft’s return. The “kids” in the CIC area plot any known air or sea movements. The cooks run a 24 hour kitchen making sure the sailors and marines are well fed.
While somewhere in Pakistan and somewhere else in Uzbekistan, soldiers and marines there are once again grumbling, “Oh joy, rice again” as a main part of their meal. They wonder if the supply folks back home will ever get the food they know and love to them.
And of course back home, the supply folks are wondering where in the blazes the forward troops have moved to again, so that they can indeed get them their food and much needed supplies shipped out as quickly as possible on the next freighter heading that way.
And so the Coasties watch and guard those freighters as they go by, making sure their critical passages in and out of ports are safe and quick. Each soldier, sailor, airman and marine share a common oath: supporting and defending the Constitution of the United States. And each share a common goal– not war, but peace.
And it is on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month that I ask all of us to take a moment of silence and utter a prayer for our service men and women, utter a prayer for peace.
Dorian J. Cougias Veteran