“The damage is far greater than the lists of casualties or cost in dollars. It permeates lifestyles. It infects cultures and people and worldviews. The war is never over for us. The fighting stops. The troops get called back. But the war goes on for those damaged by war.”
How can I hug everybody? Starting now…
This video by Reuters photographer Finbarr O’Reilly was featured on Reuters Photographers Blog about the same time last year, documenting the U.S. First Battalion Eighth Marines in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand province, including squad leader Sgt. Thomas James Brennan.
In today’s New York Times Lens Blog, Sgt. Thomas James Brennan discusses how he was at first skeptical about Finbarr being embedded in his squad, but his attitude evolved over time.
Through his photos and articles, Finbarr O’Reilly told my story and the stories of my Marines. By doing so, he helped me find my door. For this, I will forever be grateful.
I love any insight into the thoughts of our troops. They’re so brave! I know, duh, but I really think soldiers are more highly evolved to be so generous with their courage and (hopefully not) lives. On the other hand, I almost cried when I couldn’t find my teal plaid shirt this morning. I’m the opposite side of the spectrum of what these amazing men and women represent in this video.
(via soupsoup)
life:
U.S. Army nurse Wyatt Graeber holds three-month-old burn victim Zhargonia at an American combat hospital in Baghram Air Field, Afghanistan. The child was brought into the hospital when she was two days old, her face completely burned when a flaming curtain fell on her head during a kitchen fire. The hospital staff cared for her for months afterward.
see more — Today’s Wars: Iraq & Afghanistan
I ran out of tears. The soldier, the baby, how there can still be room for a smidgen of hope in the big, ugly mess that is in the same place where my parents were raised with lovely, peaceful memories. American soldiers are just the best.
(via noraleah)
