Limbo
I wasn’t going to write this, but it’s on my mind.
I have a friend in the National Guard who just served a tour in Iraq and one stint on the border. He’s a cool cat and I like him. We are both the same age, he’s one of those perpetual bachelors always dressed to kill and I’ve never met anyone who just doesn’t adore him. He has a way about him that’s hard to explain. He’s always smiling in a nice comforting way that makes everyone around him just sort of feel better.
Yeah, he’s one of those guys that you just like being around.
We get along just fine. I talked to him last night and as I drove home, I couldn’t get his face out of my head.
After talking to him for a few minutes, I realized he’s in limbo. He doesn’t know if he will have to go back to Iraq. He always has a brave face and he never gives anything away about his time at war. He is a soldier. He does what he’s told, but sometimes I see this look in his eyes that is very, and it’s hard to find words … lonely and tired.
Yeah, I guess those are the right words. There was a picture earlier this week over at Volunteer Voters and it was of a soldier and there were words written on a wall that said something along the lines of “America is not at war. The Marine Corps is at war. America is at the mall” and dammit it all if it didn’t just break my heart and resonate with me last night as I spoke with him, because, alas, I thought of that picture and it’s true.
I’m just ready for him to get his life back.
