RIPPLES ON THE WATER

RIPPLES ON THE WATER
Daggers Edge Magazine Volume 1, Issue 19
Sgt. Matthew Bryan
August 7, 2007

Also in this issue of Daggers Edge, pictures of:

1LT John Nguyen, SGT Jonathan Harowicz, SGT Jeremiah Brennan (pg 2)
PVT Steven Roberts (pg 20)

(this article also appeared in issue 7 of The Patriot Call)

There has been much speculation and endless debate on the legitimacy of the War on Terror and our mission in Iraq. Many high ranking officials and widely broadcasted personalities have spent countless hours adding their opinions and theories as to why we are here and what good we are doing. Some have pointed towards the number of lives of American Soldiers lost since the start of the war while others have noted the change and progress that has been made in what was once a dictatorship living in constant fear. At what point does one consider the conflict in Iraq as a victory?

I was sitting near a small canal that snakes its way through our Forward Operating base located in western Baghdad, watching as the fish were jumping and making tiny ripples on the water. It is kind of amazing how something so mundane and unimportant can open your eyes to the bigger picture of life in general. Those ripples, in their own way, represent the whole spectrum of operations within this violence-ridden country. As an American, I grew up with many of the enemies and fears that one would find common among an American child. My enemies and my fears were real however, but they were nothing more than a bully in school or an opponent on the football field. My fear was of not getting a good grade on a math quiz or growing up without a solid path in life. The enemies and fears of children in Iraq vastly differ from those of American children, who live in a country where walking down the street in safety is taken for granted and the only thing to worry about is making it to soccer practice on time.

While on my first patrol, I took notice of families in the neighborhoods we passed through and the condition of the neighborhoods themselves. Upon first glance I witnessed mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters. I saw children walking here and there performing the necessary tasks for sustaining a livelihood amongst the trash and filth. These men, women and children carried bags of food for their families and did what they had to do to carry on despite piles and piles of trash and decay. I took notice of their demeanor while carrying out such responsibilities. While they were carrying their groceries or simply walking down the street, there was fear in their body language. It was a fear of the unknown; a fear of their own neighborhood; a fear of me, an American Soldier. To them, I was an armed, unknown figure who spoke another language and rode around in an armored vehicle. I was a nameless and faceless Soldier who could not be trusted because they did not know what my intentions were and how I would conduct myself. If put in the same situation, I cannot honestly say that I would feel any different.

In the short amount of time since we began operations in this mulhalla (neighborhood), we have seen the people make significant strides. While on a recent patrol in the neighborhood, I made it a point to watch the emotions on the citizens’ faces and their body language as we drove by. It did not take much analysis to understand the true mind-set in their opinions of me and their “new” neighborhood. Small children, once afraid to even wave at us as we passed, now approached soldiers just to say hello and ask us our names. They were elated when we played catch with them. One event that will forever stand out in my mind was when I saw a father walking with his two children down the street - once considered the most dangerous street in our sector - at night. As a father of two small children, it is hard to imagine how visible a sign of progress that is in Iraq.

The trash and decay has been a normal part of life for Iraqi citizens, and to some extent they tolerate it. The general consensus was that this was how it is and this was how it was going to be. What could be done about it anyway? Some took their time to pile up the trash and burn it, though there were still numerous unsightly pockets of debris. Since the first month after our arrival, a trash truck has started to make its rounds through the neighborhoods on a regular basis. The unpleasant piles of garbage have since disappeared.

Some may question the significance of seemingly normal parts of life and sanitation in this area. Others may ask what this has to do with the security concerns or the welfare of the country as a whole. The answer is simple: When someone has a purpose and something to be proud of, something worth taking care of, there is a sense of pride worth fighting for. We believe that the Iraqi citizens within our area of Baghdad are becoming more proud of their neighborhoods and actually enjoy being a part of the cause to protect and improve it. There has been a disruption among the seemingly stagnant waters, a disruption that caused a ripple effect and inspired many to take action against all that is demanding around their homes. It started with one street and quickly stretched beyond the boundaries of the neighborhoods.

It has taken a lot of work and money to break the stagnant waters but, how can you put a price on a way of life? What we as Americans have taken for granted for so long is a ray of light in the eyes of an Iraqi family. The people of Iraq must now take the lead and create their own ripples in the water in order to live freely in a secure and stable environment. Who are we to tell that man walking with his children at night without fear that his ability to do that is not worth what we sacrifice as American Soldiers? As a husband and father, I worship my ability to live free and safe in a land where my family doesn‘t have to fear for their life while doing everyday tasks. Don’t you think he wants the same for his family? Don’t you think he deserves that chance?