Goodbye, Iraq

I should be sleeping, but this is a post that can not wait. Early this morning, the last U.S. Convoy arrived from COB Adder at K-Crossing. I wish so much that I could have been there for it, been a part of it...ESPECIALLY since the 1st Cav got a lot of recognition for it...but they didn't even convoy this year! MY brigade did! We pulled almost every last piece of equipment out of Iraq. But, bitterness aside for the 1st Cav, it was truely a job well-done....for the cav, for the 230th Sustainment Brigade, but most of all, for the U.S. Army. Now that we are back with our mission complete, I feel okay with discussing our mission as we have been stationed here in Kuwait. My Brigade's job has been to organize the drawdown of Iraq, the largest retrograde of equipment since WWII, something my grandfather was a part of. We organized the convoys, managed the bases and their support for our convoys, supplied food, water and fuel to these places in Iraq, kept our TCNs mostly safe (aside from the occassional high-jacking) and most of all, did not have 1 KIA from the roads. This year, other units and brigades may have, but within every unit of the 230th Sustainment Brigade, each Soldier will be returning home alive. At the beginning, I was stuck behind a desk. These last 2 months, I have seen the roads and the threats firsthand. And what we have accomplished is unreal. I wish I could have been a gunner on this last mission...over 500 Soldiers and 100 vehicles came back, but you know what? I was still there. I watched over my battle buddies, I looked for possible dangerous things, I unloaded my 240B ammo at that testfire pit...hell, I scouted and set up that testfire pit! All never to be seen again...hopefully. Will they open the boarder for good? What will become of Iraq? I have no idea, I hope for the best...but as I saw Soldiers standing outside, waiting for their battle buddies to arrive at the motorpool today, I was filled with an over-whelming sense of pride...I too, was a part of this. Lucky me =)