Halfway

25 April was my half way mark of my one year tour here. In some ways, the time has flown; in other ways it’s crawled. April, in particular, has crawled which is a shame since spring is normally one of my favorite times of the year. Already the temperatures have soared well past the century mark for more than a week and half. The exceptional cold of Baghdad’s winter now is but a halcyon memory. The highest temperature I’ve experienced was 109F two weeks ago. This week, we’ve had a slight respite with temperatures in the mid-90s which actually feels cool, if you can believe that.

Over time, we have become used to the increased indirect fire attacks (IDF) which began in earnest last Easter. The complex machinations of Iraqi domestic politics, on which the IDF attacks partially are triggered, grinds slowly forward. From where I sit, it’s hard to grasp the complete story other than the Government of Iraq now is taking greater and greater responsibility for what happens here. In some ways, that’s important progress.

In the meantime, we here in the International Zone have come to adjust to the IDF attacks. What initially was scary is now routine, a peculiar truism of war that I had read about but now know firsthand. We know what to do when IDF occurs and we get on with our jobs. Maybe simple experience ultimately nullifies the negative effect of the IDF; the rounds are small and the damage is minimal. Slowly, the threat of the attacks have lost their effectiveness, at least for me. That is not to say we have become complacent; far from it, we respond in a way that only real life experience can hone. Anyone can tell you how to ride a bike but you don’t know how until you actually do it.

The IDF and my upcoming 15-day leave put an interesting coda on my experiences thus far. I do know that I am ready to get the Hell Out Of Here, at least for a while. But because I know that I’ll have to come back, I haven’t breathed that mental sigh of relief that I have seen on the faces of other people who are about to redeploy for good. I hope I will be able to relax at home. When I see my attractive wife and handsome two-year old son, I think I will...