Signs of change

February 14, 2005

The door of the Taji Bureau trailer is empty for the first time since spring 2004.

I just took the dry erase board off the outside and tossed it into a trash bin. The last message I received is still there in purple ink, below the well worn words, “Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Taji Bureau.”

I got the message yesterday.

“Capt. Bridges wants you to move back to Gunslinger no later than Tuesday. Sgt. Rivera.”

The 1st Battalion, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, from Fort Irwin, Calif. is coming.

Soon.

There are several other signs that we’re short timers.

The sign at the new bus stop that popped up across the road by 3rd Battalion’s group of trailers says, “Surge Housing.”

That sign is meant for us, the 39th Brigade.

It doesn’t sound like a pleasant place, does it.

Surge housing.

Surge. No good can come from that, I figure.

Well, some good can. It’s one step closer to home.

Speaking of close, it’s going to be close living. Bunk beds in a warehouse with the two duffle bags we’re allowed to lug home stowed beneath them.

The new guys will be living here in 3rd Battalion’s area before the end of the week. I’m delaying my move to surge housing by a few weeks by moving to my room at Gunslinger until March.

Everyone around me is moving. Bravo Company has piles of duffle bags and black storage boxes stacked everywhere. We’re all shrinking down to bare essentials for these last few weeks.

I pulled the Taji Bureau Survival Guide off the inside of the door just a bit ago.

It holds a whole year’s worth of guidance for how to live with the army in Iraq. There’s some good life lessons there, too. I’ve mentioned a few of these in the past, but let me give you the rundown of the guide the photographers and I have created. There are a couple of guest authors as well since we couldn’t have come up with all of this on our own!

Taji Bureau Survival Guide

* Drink Water

* Be Patient

* Chew Gum — It gives you something to do while they’re shooting at you. [Photographer Staton Breidenthal was not kidding when he wrote this one. I carry gum with me because of him.]

* Always Get the Gravy.

* Nap

* Be a Turtle [That’s my reaction in a gunfight. I try to get my whole body into my body armor. It’s worked well for me.]

* Be Flexible

* 15 Minutes Early is Late

* Change Socks, Powder Ass Daily (Delta Company’s 1st Sgt. Tyler Hatch added that one. Crude? Yes. Helpful? Definitely.)

* Let Sleeping Public Information Officers Lie [That’s a little joke about a night spent on the flight line with Lt. Chris Heathscott and Staton way back in June.]

* If the Public Information Officer Doesn’t Know, Ask Amy [Heathscott added that one himself.]

* It’s Important to Moisturize

* If You Have Two of Something, You Have One. If You Have One of Something, You Have None. [The infantry’s way of explaining the need for redundancy.]

I pulled my map of Baghdad off the wall last night. The two pictures of my dog, Henry, came down a few minutes ago.

As I walk out of this trailer for the last time in a few minutes, I’ll grab the horseshoe that has rested above the door since the day I found it in a warehouse. It’s from Saddam’s cavalry. There’s a warehouse here piled high with horseshoes, stirrups and bridles.

And it’s served me well here, collecting good luck for me.

I guess I’m a little sentimental.

We all are as we prepare to go home, I think.

We’re about to say good-bye to a community like no other. A buddy is just a door away. Imagine walking into your favorite restaurant every night and always seeing at least 50 familiar faces.

Can’t sleep? You can bet someone is up playing chess or watching a movie.

Something wrong? Take five steps out the door and find a friend.

Soldiers are beginning to talk about how they’ll miss one another.

They’ve relied on each other for friendship and survival for a year now and are facing the day they will go their separate ways.

And small items of comfort become big ones.

When we get home and unpack all of those boxes we shipped home with comfort items we couldn’t bear to part with over here, I have no doubt we’ll wonder why we kept them at all.

Then we’ll remember how much those little things made a difference here, making things more homey.

And we’ll remember the laughter and the faces we’ll never see again. We’ll remember the poo water and garbage, dust and heat, and gain a whole new appreciation for home.

Posted by Amy at February 14, 2005 04:52 AM