| A Tankers Prayer Our Father who art in Heaven Bless us as we go through these roads of Peril. That we may deliver the materials to those who wish to destroy evil. May your white light always shine on us, so that it will deflect the RPG’s and Bullets, that the insurgents wishing to kill us may fail in their efforts, and if you decide to call us home please let us die swift and fast and forgive us of our sins, Amen. H.L. KBR Iraq |
My Foxhole
This is the view from my foxhole. No matter how the media spins it, our presence here
gives the Iraqi people the best chance they have had in the past 35 years. The Iraqis I
work with every day all agree that Iraqi is better today than before the war. They all agree
that the US should stay. They all love US soldiers. They are not representative of EVERY
Iraqi, but they probably represent the educated Iraqis who understand what is going on in
their country. Everywhere I go (Christian churches, markets, Ministries, homes,
neighborhoods) I am greeted as a liberator. People come up to me and shake my hand,
thanking me for coming and asking me to stay. People tell me stories of persecution and
torture and fear and oppression. Christians tell me of their prayers for liberation and
salvation and how we are the instruments of God. I am offered food and drink and
presents. If I was not married, I could get married many times over! Yes, I carry my
weapon everywhere and watch my back for the Muslim radical/ nationalist/ terrorist looking
to kill an American today. Yes, I travel almost exclusively during the day, and with a trusted
guide and translator. Yes, I watch the MEDEVAC helicopters land day and night at the
military hospital across the street, bringing the days casualties from IEDs (improvised
explosive devices) and ambushes and mines. Yes, I listen at night to the nightly mortar and
rocket attacks on the "Green Zone" where I live and listen to the nightly automatic
weapons fire. And yes, I have learned that death is quite random and sudden and
indiscriminate and that no one is bullet proof or invulnerable. But I have also learned that
my Faith in God is bigger than any fear and any loneliness and any doubt. I have learned
that some things are worth dying for, even if that dying has to be done by me or my
friends. Like most soldiers, I thought I was coming here to fight the Iraqi people. I found
that I came here to liberate the Iraqi people. We staged out of Kuwait and, like most
deployed soldiers, we have found the Iraqis to be better people than the Kuwaitis. More
hardworking and friendlier. We have a long way to go, but we are doing the right thing
here. We can't afford to do this everywhere, and for that we are criticized. We are here for
whatever reasons...I'm sure I will never know most of them. But it is also true that every
country would be better off if we could come there and give them a chance to live lives free
of tyranny and oppression. Of course, Louisiana would be better off if we went there and
built roads and renovated schools. I don't make those big decisions. I'm just glad to be
here, as a soldier, doing my part. I'm glad to be here, as a Christian, doing my part. I'm
ready to go home, but I will miss this mission and these people. I pray I can come back
here in the future to see a free, thriving Iraq. That would make the sacrifices easier to
take. However, even if we fail, it will have been worth the effort and sacrifice. The Iraqi
people have much more to lose than we do. I pray we succeed, for their sake. May God
Bless You All!! Love your friends and families. Enjoy your lives. Study hard and pray hard
and decide now where you want to spend eternity.
Love,
Rich
Richard T. Phillips LTC, MS Deputy G-3, 30th Medical Brigade.
This is the view from my foxhole. No matter how the media spins it, our presence here
gives the Iraqi people the best chance they have had in the past 35 years. The Iraqis I
work with every day all agree that Iraqi is better today than before the war. They all agree
that the US should stay. They all love US soldiers. They are not representative of EVERY
Iraqi, but they probably represent the educated Iraqis who understand what is going on in
their country. Everywhere I go (Christian churches, markets, Ministries, homes,
neighborhoods) I am greeted as a liberator. People come up to me and shake my hand,
thanking me for coming and asking me to stay. People tell me stories of persecution and
torture and fear and oppression. Christians tell me of their prayers for liberation and
salvation and how we are the instruments of God. I am offered food and drink and
presents. If I was not married, I could get married many times over! Yes, I carry my
weapon everywhere and watch my back for the Muslim radical/ nationalist/ terrorist looking
to kill an American today. Yes, I travel almost exclusively during the day, and with a trusted
guide and translator. Yes, I watch the MEDEVAC helicopters land day and night at the
military hospital across the street, bringing the days casualties from IEDs (improvised
explosive devices) and ambushes and mines. Yes, I listen at night to the nightly mortar and
rocket attacks on the "Green Zone" where I live and listen to the nightly automatic
weapons fire. And yes, I have learned that death is quite random and sudden and
indiscriminate and that no one is bullet proof or invulnerable. But I have also learned that
my Faith in God is bigger than any fear and any loneliness and any doubt. I have learned
that some things are worth dying for, even if that dying has to be done by me or my
friends. Like most soldiers, I thought I was coming here to fight the Iraqi people. I found
that I came here to liberate the Iraqi people. We staged out of Kuwait and, like most
deployed soldiers, we have found the Iraqis to be better people than the Kuwaitis. More
hardworking and friendlier. We have a long way to go, but we are doing the right thing
here. We can't afford to do this everywhere, and for that we are criticized. We are here for
whatever reasons...I'm sure I will never know most of them. But it is also true that every
country would be better off if we could come there and give them a chance to live lives free
of tyranny and oppression. Of course, Louisiana would be better off if we went there and
built roads and renovated schools. I don't make those big decisions. I'm just glad to be
here, as a soldier, doing my part. I'm glad to be here, as a Christian, doing my part. I'm
ready to go home, but I will miss this mission and these people. I pray I can come back
here in the future to see a free, thriving Iraq. That would make the sacrifices easier to
take. However, even if we fail, it will have been worth the effort and sacrifice. The Iraqi
people have much more to lose than we do. I pray we succeed, for their sake. May God
Bless You All!! Love your friends and families. Enjoy your lives. Study hard and pray hard
and decide now where you want to spend eternity.
Love,
Rich
Richard T. Phillips LTC, MS Deputy G-3, 30th Medical Brigade.
| The Battle The guns of war are silent now; Their cold, blue steel at rest. The soldier’s rage now goes unfueled. It’s all a memory, we passed the test. The battlefield where we once fought; Is now a farm amongst the wood. Into a plowshare, from a sword; The course of history is changed for good. The result of our warrior ways Is the glory of our finest hour. To show the world our solemn oath, We showed the world our awesome power. So many could live, the few had to die. Their blood is mixed into the ground. We’ll never forget their memory, They were not left on the battleground. Our children’s children will hear the tales; Of our fierce resolve, of our solemn vow They will feel the pride for years, That we soldiers feel right now. SSG Shawn Magee Jan, 2004 Kirkush, Iraq |
| Please send us your story! |
| The Military Wife There’s never a medal, given in this life. For the sacrifice she made, the military wife. From early in the morning, till way late at night She waits and she worries, for her Armored Knight. Will he arrive, is he injured or worse? It’s her torment, her hell, her trial, her curse. It takes a special woman to endure all the pain. Of loving a boy, a soldier, arms empty again. She endures the hardship the best that she can. Praying to God “Please return to me that man.” While he goes out for glory, for medals of gold. She tends the flock, keeps steady the fold. She suffers in silence, never complains or whines, As he once again lays his life on the line. One who hasn’t been there, wouldn't understand this life, Of the real hero, the real martyr, the military wife. Shawn Magee September, 2003 Iraq |
Soldier's Stories
Stories from Our Soldiers
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