Veterans

I really got to know these guys. Most were about my age at the time and they were fun and decent guys to be around. Actually, getting to know these guys did a lot for me and understanding that people everything are essentially the same. Young guys all talk about and joke about the same things (sex). Even in the middle east where such subjects were supposedly forbidden, it was talked about and joked about extensively.

This one guy started off working as a janitor on our base. We discovered that he could speak English and so he ended up getting hired as a translator. He was maybe 20 years old and he had a younger sister who was 18 or so. We used to rag him all the time to introduce us to his sister but he insisted that he would never do that because we weren't Muslim.

We all knew where he lived and we made sure that we never went anywhere near his neighborhood when we were on patrol with him. It was very dangerous for people to find out that you worked for the Americans. Anyways, I tried to invite myself and my platoon over to his house, but he wouldn't have anything to do with it.

Anyways, I guess he and his father got into an argument/feud with their neighbor and they fired a couple of shots at each other's houses. Nobody was hurt, but the next day when he told us about it we offered to go by and raid his neighbors house for him! He declined.

He was a nice guy. He was hoping to immigrate to Jordan and eventually make it to the US. I have no idea what happened to him. I hope that him and his other translator buddy are doing alright.