The Power of a Piece of Candy

Hopefully these pictures will tell a little story. This boy and his family were from a Sunni village we visited the other day. This was the first time we’d been to this village, and we’d heard most of the people were hardcore Sunnis, in favor during Sadaam’s rule. Our primary mission wasn’t to pass out gifts, but as you can see in these pictures, small gifts can work wonders. Anytime you go to a town like this, where you know there’s a higher likelihood the people may not receive you well, you tend to become more alert and focused than usual. In a town like this, where tensions may run high, there always seems to be a moment when you realize that everything isn’t as bad as previously thought. This was that moment for me.

It’s unfortunate that the media seem to only portray our relationship with the Sunni population in a negative light. I don’t pretend to think that we are liked by all of them, but based on my experiences, we are liked by many. These are but a few of the many, and these images are indicative of what I see on a regular basis. Maybe one day the media will open their eyes to it as well.

He looks to be somewhat intimidated by us


Enter Sgt. W. , American, 3rd ID soldier, platoon sergeant, husband, dad, and all around good guy when he’s not mad as hell


A gift is offered


Looks to his family for approval


Gets it


A tentative friendship emerges


All smiles


Imagine if a soccer ball could take the place of that piece of candy. We could move mountains, and the media would have to eventually take notice. There are soldiers all over Iraq doing the same thing and achieving the same result that Sgt. W did.

We’re fortunate to have a platoon sergeant like Sgt. W. He can be mean as hell when he wants to, but he’s fiercely loyal, and would do anything for any soldier in his platoon. Sgt. W, Thomas, and I have been together for almost a year and a half now. We’re like a little family inside the bigger family that is our platoon. We’ve probably spent more time together than we have with our real families. There was a time, in late January of 2004, when I had spent more nights with Sgt. W and Thomas than I had my wife. We’d been married in December, but our unit spent the month of January in the deserts of California. For more than two consecutive weeks, Sgt W., Thomas, and I slept inside the same Bradley.

Ray, Thomas, and I have been with each other for the past three years. Not only are they some of the best friends I’ll ever have, but they’re like brothers as well. We were over here together during the invasion and the months that followed. We fought together, got shot at together, shot back together, lived together, slept together, ate together, and laughed together. It’s a good feeling to go outside these gates knowing those same guys are right there with you. They’re the reason I wanted to come back over here, why I didn’t mind being extended for the duration of this deployment. I’d have felt like I was letting them down if I wasn’t over here. They and the rest of my platoon are my family now, irreplaceable, the only people that matter. I couldn’t imagine not being with them. We keep each other sane amid the insanity. Hopefully we’ll all go home together.