Sometime in 2004
Out late again, at least it's a cool night. This neighborhood seems unknown, but all too familiar. Those who stand in front of me are vaguely recognizable by the darkness of the night.
By now Monday and Saturday have become a wretched blend of my daily routine. Remarkably, somewhere at this exact moment, someone is having a good time, perhaps they're at the beach. It really doesn't matter, and only helps feed my anxiety.
One thing at a time..
Those ahead of me would occasionally look back, and it was hard to tell what expressions their obscure faces had. The hidden eyes of those around me sent chills running down my spine. Quite possibly, they felt the same about me.
Who knows, who cares, why even think about these things. Long nights, and a constant state of urgency have finally done their work on this human body of mine. It will be time to rest soon, focus is key right now. Focus however, is clearly missing from my current situation. Wait...
PANIC!
This is what happens when you lose focus! where can they be!? Nobody is ahead of me anymore. Angered and frightened, adrenaline suddenly jolts through my body causing my hands to shake. What are my options? find shelter, and dig in? Someone will notice me gone sooner or later. Run home? no, that's a stupid idea, think, remember the training.
The training! the endless repetitive training! take a knee and use your head. Out of the corner of my eye, a tall grass field extends a welcoming arm, my only hope is that they're there.
As I ran across the streets of Baghdad that night, complacency had struck me and thus I lost track of my platoon. I soon realized that while I was providing over-watch for my platoon, our patrol had cut across the street and into a tall grass field which made them difficult to see. When I ran back to re-group with them, they didn't notice I was gone. What may have been a minute or so, seemed like an eternity to me, that's why these are the nights that I'll never forget.
