Entry tags:
Memorial Day
I thought about not posting this because it seemed like a bit of a downer, but then I decided that Memorial Day *is* a day for remembering.
Joe has two friends who have died in Iraq. I was not particularly close to either of them, but I think about them a lot. The first one was Matt. He died pretty early on in the war - I think he was ambushed somewhere near Hadditha. I met him once before they left. At his memorial service, everyone talked about how friendly and easy going he was and what fun it was to work with him. He was in charge of logistics movement for Joe's unit the first time they deployed. I know Joe feels bad because he used to joke with Matt that the Iraqis (I don't think they were called insurgents then) never went after the hard targets, like the headquarters where Joe worked, but instead went after the soft targets - like the convoys that Matt managed and led. I know his father is still alive. Matt wasn't married and didn't have children, although that doesn't mean that there wasn't someone special who misses him.
The other guy was named Josh. Joe didn't really know him, although they interacted on a regular basis. Josh's death is special to me, though, for a different reason. When I went to pick up Joe from Iraq the first time, I ended up being there on the wrong day. I felt REALLY dumb. So when I went the next day, I was still feeling dumb and sort of awkward. There were two other women there with signs and balloons. One of them was waiting for her husband. The other was her good friend and she was just there for moral support. This was Kim - Josh's wife. She was exactly the sort of friend I'd wished I'd had - someone upbeat and excited and willing to be there even though it wasn't her husband that was coming. I told her this and she said it was the kind of thing she'd do happily for a friend. I can't imagine what it's like to see your friend's husband walk out of the plane and not yours, even though Josh was still alive at that point. Anyway, she was kind enough to take pictures of Joe and I when he got back and she mailed them to me later with the kindest note, about how great Joe was and how she appreciated his update on conditions in Iraq.
I think about Kim a lot. She and I were in very similar places back then. Her husband died maybe two months after I met her, in a roadside bomb. I can't even imagine what that would do to you. I hope she is happy, but no matter what good things await her, she will always have lost her husband.
Joe has two friends who have died in Iraq. I was not particularly close to either of them, but I think about them a lot. The first one was Matt. He died pretty early on in the war - I think he was ambushed somewhere near Hadditha. I met him once before they left. At his memorial service, everyone talked about how friendly and easy going he was and what fun it was to work with him. He was in charge of logistics movement for Joe's unit the first time they deployed. I know Joe feels bad because he used to joke with Matt that the Iraqis (I don't think they were called insurgents then) never went after the hard targets, like the headquarters where Joe worked, but instead went after the soft targets - like the convoys that Matt managed and led. I know his father is still alive. Matt wasn't married and didn't have children, although that doesn't mean that there wasn't someone special who misses him.
The other guy was named Josh. Joe didn't really know him, although they interacted on a regular basis. Josh's death is special to me, though, for a different reason. When I went to pick up Joe from Iraq the first time, I ended up being there on the wrong day. I felt REALLY dumb. So when I went the next day, I was still feeling dumb and sort of awkward. There were two other women there with signs and balloons. One of them was waiting for her husband. The other was her good friend and she was just there for moral support. This was Kim - Josh's wife. She was exactly the sort of friend I'd wished I'd had - someone upbeat and excited and willing to be there even though it wasn't her husband that was coming. I told her this and she said it was the kind of thing she'd do happily for a friend. I can't imagine what it's like to see your friend's husband walk out of the plane and not yours, even though Josh was still alive at that point. Anyway, she was kind enough to take pictures of Joe and I when he got back and she mailed them to me later with the kindest note, about how great Joe was and how she appreciated his update on conditions in Iraq.
I think about Kim a lot. She and I were in very similar places back then. Her husband died maybe two months after I met her, in a roadside bomb. I can't even imagine what that would do to you. I hope she is happy, but no matter what good things await her, she will always have lost her husband.