DECEMBER 1 – It’s December 1st! I never thought it would get here! I have about 21 days until I walk in the door of my Charlotte home to see my wife and children. This journey began on September 22nd of 2006 at Fort Riley Kansas. I can’t believe that this experience is finally coming to an end. I’m sitting outside my trailer watching the sunset as the evening air grows cold and brisk. I will be soon walking the streets of Charlotte again going to my favorite Starbucks coffee shop that is located in the Bank of America atrium at the corner of Trade and Tryon Street. I will have my usual, which is a Venti bold coffee with a shot of hazelnut flavoring. I can’t help but feel a sense that a piece of me will end up staying here. This country truly has a long way to go before any major changes can take place. The special interest groups, along with the influence from Iran are just a few of the issues facing this poor nation. Now that I have been living here, I can now put faces to this place. I can set to memory the sights and sounds of this place in great detail. I remember the first time I drove down the streets of Baghdad and saw a man riding in a cart that was being pulled by a donkey in mid-afternoon traffic. I can recall the many times the aroma of freshly baked bread cascaded from the marketplace. I remember the first attempt at doing the traditional Iraqi greeting. This would be between two men where they kiss each other on the cheek followed by saying the word “salaam”.I won’t miss those brutal summer days with a heat index of 120 degrees that caused my uniform to be soaked through with my own sweat. For some strange reason, there is a part of me that doesn’t want to leave. I don’t know why, but I feel that I have embraced in some way a deep understanding of this place and its culture. In some ways, Iraq has embraced me too. There are so many things that I have learned about the people of Iraq. To my surprise, they have laughed at my sense of humor. As a compliment, I was told, that I must have some Iraqi ‘blood’ in me because I was not afraid to partake in their customs or courtesies. The truth is, this world event has brought us all together. I hope that in some crazy way, we all have seen this as a unique opportunity to learn about each other. As for me, I like it! I’ve also gained some in-depth wisdom from this experience as well.I have grown into a deeper appreciation of what America is. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world! We are NOT a perfect country, but it is evident in our history that we have and will attempt to do the right thing. I just wish the rest of the world would understand how much the United States is such a positive influence on the rest of the world! I can see it in the eyes of these people. They really want the benefits of what we enjoy as Americans, but they don’t know how to get there. For starters, they must be willing to make a selfless sacrifice to make their nation great.

DECEMBER 3 – Our replacements are finally here. They are an eleven-man team just like us that is made up of one-half officers and the other sergeants. I can see the same eagerness in their attitude, that we had when we first arrived, to quickly get started with the mission. We will have to double up in our rooms for the time being with them until we do a final turnover of equipment and mission responsibilities. My replacement is a young staff sergeant who comes from Fort Bragg North Carolina. We quickly exchanged pleasantries and began quickly comparing notes on the training that both of our teams received in preparation for this mission. I noticed immediately that most of the guys on their team had a background in the infantry. In this reality, this will not carry any advantage to them. Good people and social skills mixed with the ability to manage these Iraqi teams will be of the utmost value to their success. These Iraqi teams will test first them by responding to them on the social level. In Iraqi culture, a personal relationship is valued.  Iraqi people must feel connected to you before they even consider opening themselves up to you. This would prove to be difficult for our team to communicate this concept to the next team, but we were ready to hand over the responsibility to them quickly. There is so much to tell. Most of the lessons will have to be experienced by them on their own. It is impossible to tell them just what to look for in every situation. This team looked pretty good. They seem to like each other. Today they came right into our team room and began to set up their shop. My counterpart moved his belongings into my office and began cleaning. I didn’t feel a sense of loss, because, for the last 4 months, our chief kept us out at the station so much that I forgot what it was like to use it. It was a good feeling to be clearing out my desk. This new team was taking over now. I’m going home. That’s all that mattered to me.

DECEMBER 6 – Today was the last time outside the wire. We went to visit the new sector that our replacements will be working in. This is a new sector that is very dangerous. From what I have been told this area has a lot of JAM (Jaysh Al Mahdi Militia) influence in it. Today we will travel to the infantry unit that will be supporting our new team in this area. We hopped into our trucks as we have so many times before and headed out of the gate. To my surprise, the commute to this camp is only 20 minutes away! We meet with the First Sergeant and company commander to get the briefing on this area. We also get a tour of the place by the First Sergeant. I have seen so many of these in sector camps and after a while, they begin to look the same to me. It is a compound that is surrounded by twelve-foot-high containment walls. There is also the main building where the commander works and there is a building where the troops sleep. You can bet that there will be a place that they will have set up with weights for the soldiers to work out. This camp is smaller than the place that I stayed at when I was in downtown Baghdad. The good news is that this unit has a mobile kitchen on site. The First Sergeant said that they would be serving two hot meals a day shortly. This is good news for the soldiers who will live out there full-time. There is another section in which the Iraqi National Police live. They have been given a few buildings to house their personnel. The tour was finished and we completed our mandatory visit. We loaded back on the trucks and headed back to our home base. While riding down the road my thoughts bring me back to how all of this seemed so new to me when I first got here. I remember viewing the neighborhoods and streets of Baghdad from my position in the turret on the truck. I couldn’t believe that this would be my last time driving these streets of Baghdad. There will be no more scanning the rooftops for snipers or watching cars on the highway for suspicious behavior. This would be the last time that I will ever see these streets. I wish these people well. They have so much to do if they want to become a self-reliant nation. We make it back to the gate of our main camp in no time. I am so excited because I don’t have to wear this heavy body armor anymore either. The stains of sweat and dirt on it tell the story of my year over here. My duty is done and now I am ready to come home!

DECEMBER 7 – For some strange reason, I remember that December 7th was the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked. I can remember the voice of the news journalist when he said: “This is a day of infamy.” War is ugly no matter where it is. I went to our team room to get the rest of my stuff out of one of our trucks. The new team is moving into our area so fast it is obvious that my mission here is done. I go outside to the trucks and I see one of my captains from my team has gotten the same idea. I go over to him to ask him if he would let me videotape his comments about how he thinks the war is going in Iraq. I am surprised by his response to me. He declined my offer to videotape him but he did make this statement: “This is an easy war to fight. The problem is that today’s army is a different army. This is an army that wants to be the good guy at all times and is not willing to be uncomfortable to do some hard things to win this war. It is obvious that the American people are not behind us in this war. Most of them don’t even why we are over here. Young people are growing up not having respect and a sense of duty to serve their country. They view it more as a choice than a birthright. It is sad that most of them are not even willing to wear the uniform. This war shouldn’t take this long to win.” I can’t help but agree with his statement about “not wanting to wear the uniform.” The camp where I have lived for a whole year has civilian contractors living and working. Some of these contractors were former military personnel. They all hold positions that were held by soldiers in the old army. Jobs such as logistics, food service, communication, and weapons repair. The crazy thing about this is there are contractors that are getting paid in some cases twice as much as an individual in uniform. I have heard discussions among other soldiers that when they return to the States they will get out of the military and try to return as a contractor. This saddens me but at the same time, there is some logic to it as well. I have enjoyed the honor and privilege of serving as a U.S. soldier. It is something I will treasure for the rest of my life. On the other hand, with jobs being the way they are in the States, I could understand anyone jumping at the opportunity to make $100K a year tax-free. We finished the interview and I grabbed the rest of my gear out of what was now the other team’s truck. There are so many opinions as to why we are here. I feel like I have heard them all. Which one is the right one? I don’t know but in either case, I just want to go home to my little house in Charlotte, North Carolina. I want to see my wife’s smile and the sound of my children’s laughter. Politics is too difficult for me. Being here has made one thing true for me. People are people and the ones that I have met just want to take care of their families and live in peace just like I do.

DECEMBER 9 – Last night we moved out of our rooms into the transient tents on the other side of our camp. Our replacements have fully taken over everything. This tent is a full-size tent that sleeps about 50 or more guys. We are located back behind the mess hall so the walk to go get chow is shorter than the one I had taken all year long. The restroom and showers here too are located in trailers directly behind us. I was shaving this morning when another soldier that I knew came in and placed his stuff near the basin where I was standing. “Jonesie!” I shouted as we shook hands and embraced each other right there in the latrine. “Big Lew (a name that I am called around here and so reluctantly answer to), how are you doing?” he asked as we stood back from one another as if we were inspecting one another for war wounds. Sgt. Jones was in my class that trained for this mission at Fort Riley, Kansas. We immediately began comparing notes on our team, the mission, and the dangerous experiences that we had. Well, I will tell you this. I thought that my situation was bad but after listening to my friend whose team has been blown up eighteen times it made me feel more and more grateful for what I had been through. Also, they lost a man because half of his foot was blown off in one of the IED (improvised explosion device) attacks against them. The rest of the teams are slowly coming in from their respective camps to prepare to go home. This is an exciting time. Some of these guys such as Sgt. Jones I haven’t seen since we left Fort Riley together.

DECEMBER 10 – We had to move to another camp. This camp will house me and my team for the next 4 days while we await our flight to Kuwait. This tent is even smaller than the one we left only this time we are sleeping on military cots instead of beds. The morale of the guys will make up for the substandard living conditions. At this camp, units are coming and going. You can tell the new units from the old ones that are leaving. The soldiers from the new units seem to be on the edge and anxious while the soldiers that are leaving are exhibiting behavior that equals their enthusiasm about going home. The mission is over for me now. No more danger, no more rockets or bombs; this camp will help me decompress in the next few days. I saw Green Beans coffee shop over by the PX (Post Exchange). I just put my bags in the tent. I think I will go over to Green Beans and have them make me a bold coffee with a shot of hazelnut!

DECEMBER 12 – I fully understand the function of this camp now. As I get older I find myself having to go to the restroom at least once during the night. So as usual Mother Nature calls and I wake up to answer the call. Like I said before I am in an area where there is nothing but tents. As I begin my walk in the dark to the portable bathrooms I am startled by a large group of soldiers that are standing around outside. The pathway is partially dark but I can see so many soldiers standing around talking or smoking cigarettes. They all are dressed in their body armor, and helmets, and carrying their rifles. There is a lot of noise going on for it to be 2:30 a.m. in the morning. Then there is the high-pitched beeping sound of a forklift’s backup horn that can be heard as well. I am just about thirty feet from my destination where on my left I pass an assembly area where there are buses being boarded by soldiers dressed in their full combat attire. I eventually make it to the restroom and I quickly make my way back through the darkness to my tent. The loud and unique sound of an Air Force C-130 cargo plane can be heard taking off down the runway in the distance. This is the same aircraft that I will take to Kuwait. You won’t believe this but as I am writing this, I can hear a pack of dogs barking in the distance! I understand about the soldiers, the forklift, and the buses but this camp comes alive with activity! I just wish they would pick a better time than late at night to do all of this. They also could be a little quieter while they were doing it. I’m just a guy trying to get some sleep around here!

DECEMBER 13 – So many soldiers from my class are showing up at the camp each day. When we were at Fort Riley, Kansas we were called Class 11. Class 11 is made up of about ten other teams that are just like mine. I will refresh your memory; we are called National Police Transition Teams. Our sole function is to train, mentor, and advise the Iraqi National Police force in Iraq. When we graduated in December we all said our goodbyes to one another when we left Camp Taji, Iraq, and went we to separate sectors throughout Iraq. As you know my team and I went to Baghdad. Well, all of these guys are showing up team by team. They too have completed their mission and are headed home. We recognize each other faces and instantly we stop and greet each other with a firm handshake and our American version of a man hug. It’s almost like we are at our twentieth high school class reunion. This is so different because the first question that we ask each other is a difficult one. “Did you lose anyone?” is the first question that is asked before we continue on in any further discussion. To be honest this question is a nail-biter because without a doubt we all know that there were casualties during our time over here it’s just a matter of which team had the loss. It is equally hard because we all knew each other when we were at Fort Riley. It is good to see everyone but I can see the hardship of war on their faces. One sergeant asked me “Was your hair always gray like that or did you gray while you were over here?” I laughed at his comment because who knows what my body did to respond to the stress of going outside ‘the wire’ every day.

DECEMBER 14 – I don’t know why the Army always makes us travel at night. We are given the word to have our bags packed and outside ready for pickup at 2 a.m. in the morning. The news that we will soon be leaving Iraq surges the mood of the guys on my team. The time is slowly approaching when I will say goodbye to the members of my team. Most of them I will probably never see again. There were certain key people on this team that were responsible for destroying the morale and will of this team. We will have to travel back to Fort Riley as a team. Even though we are sharing a tent awaiting our flight to Kuwait, the mood is silent and cold. If anyone has reason to hold hard feelings it is me. I can hold an offense against each member of my team, but to pursue it would be counterproductive and a waste of time to me. I will say this; when working within the confines of a team it is the responsibility of every member of the team to contribute something to the success of the team. This team is made up of senior-ranking personnel. Each member including myself has held a key leadership position somewhere. These transition teams have many flaws but there is one that stands out to me the most. That is they have assembled a group of leaders who don’t work well together. These teams don’t understand ‘Synergy’. Synergy is the ability of a team to discover its strengths and weaknesses as a group and develop successful strategies to ensure the team’s overall effectiveness. What I am hearing from the other teams is there is division, disrespect, and discord within the group. It is funny despite how I might feel about each member of my team I do believe each member has something to contribute to the group. It just saddens me that the working relationship between 11 guys who have been together for 15 months will come to an end on a bad note. Some of my teammates have already said that they can’t wait for all of us to depart the company for good. Well, I don’t share these same sediments of emotion. It just proves one thing to me that not everyone can be the boss and if everyone was the boss you wouldn’t ever get anything done because everyone would be mad at each other.

DECEMBER 15 – We landed yesterday morning in Kuwait at 8:05 a.m. It was official; I was out of the country of Iraq! No more rockets, IEDs (improvised explosion devices), or patrols! I was done! This has truly been the year of my life that has brought me all the way to the Middle East. I know that some of the full-time army guys will probably see duty over here again in the near future. When I get back I will have to relinquish my drill sergeant hat because of my promotion to Master Sergeant. I have been assigned to a new company in which I will now work in my occupational skill set which is logistics. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to serve as a soldier over here. I have no regrets just only memories. My prayers go out to the friends that I have left behind. I hope one day whether here on earth or in heaven we both agree that someday will see each other again. We are being lodged at a base camp in Kuwait where there are Korean, British, and Kuwaiti troops. Here we will sit for two days and prepare to go through customs for our flight back to Fort Riley, Kansas. As I’ve said before the atmosphere is like that of a high school class reunion. We are being reunited with each other. The conversation will always turn to comparing notes on the experiences each team went through during their mission. Today I spent the whole day today relaxing at the USO tent. I got up to get a cup of coffee and it was then that I ran into a captain that I knew from another team. We exchanged pleasantries and I asked the million-dollar question, “did lose anyone?” The captain’s demeanor turned solemn as the expression on his face gave away his answer. “Yes, we lost two soldiers who died in IED attacks. There was a third soldier that was just injured but he survived.” I couldn’t but help express my sympathy for the loss of his team members. He went on to say that it was a difficult time for him and his team to deal with such a loss. For those of us who didn’t experience something like that firsthand, it will still have some effect on us anyway. We trained with these guys at Fort Riley and even though they weren’t a part of the team they are still part of our brotherhood. They will be missed.

DECEMBER 17 – We are boarding our commercial flight today which will first land us at Ramstein Air Force base in Germany. Of course, this is the same type of flying torture trap that took me home for R&R leave in September. The seats are very small and there is very little legroom. This time I had a different plan. I’m going to volunteer to be on the baggage detail team. This team of about 50 guys will help with the loading and unloading of all our baggage. My expectations are that if I volunteer for this duty I will be rewarded later with a comfortable seat on the plane. It was about 4:00 a.m. when we arrived at the U.S. Customs Clearing station. The baggage team would be the first off the buses to take up positions to unload all of this baggage. I never realized that my class (200 soldiers) could have so much baggage! The airline would allow each soldier to have 4 duffle bags, a backpack, and one carry-on that could also be a laptop computer. The baggage team was shuttled to an area where a big tractor-trailer truck was waiting to be unloaded. We formed a single filed line and began to unload the tractor-trailer. Wow! I have such respect for people who work at places like UPS or FedEx. When we finally unloaded the last duffle bag the ground was covered with a sea of duffle bags, backpacks, and a few other odd-looking bags. All these bags had one thing in common; they were heavy as hell! The weather in Kuwait is much warmer than it is in Iraq so the early morning air was warm enough for me and a few of the guys to break out into a decent sweat. The next part of this process that I absolutely hated was that all of these bags out here would have to be inspected by U.S. Customs inspectors. That meant that a Customs agent would empty each bag and check for prohibited items. The only good thing about this is that I would have to personally bring my 4 duffle bags, backpack, and laptop computer through to have it inspected. This part was painful because the agent would have storage bins nearby where he would empty the entire contents of each bag that I so neatly packed on a table and go through each item one by one. After he was satisfied that I didn’t have any illegal items such as ammunition, drugs, weapons, or pornography he would then have me take the mess that he made to another table where I would have to repack my bag. I didn’t do this routine for each of my bags! Once all of my bags were re-packed I went to the exit door where some of my baggage team buddies were assigned to check to make sure that each bag had been inspected. Once I cleared these guys we brought our bags outside to another group of guys who were standing near a truck that had a conveyor belt sticking out the back of it to load our bags back onto another truck. I was then ushered to a containment area where I couldn’t leave. This is where we all sat for the next two hours until our flight was ready to leave. Whew! This process started at 4:00 a.m. and we were done by 7:30 a.m. Am I tiring you out yet? I am not done yet. We were put back on buses to head out to the airport runway where the baggage team was called back into action again. Our job this time was to load the hull of the plane. They had a conveyor belt that extended from the hull of the plane. The truck that carried all of our bags pulled up alongside us and quickly we formed into three teams. One team would be up in the plane to receive the bags from the guys below who would be putting the bags on the conveyor belt. The third team would be unloading the truck. I was on the team putting the bags on the conveyor belt. Again, I have such respect for the men and women who do this kind of work. When we were done and the plane was loaded some bad happened. A bus pulled up with a company of soldiers from the country of Macedonia. I believe this is a country in Europe somewhere. The fact that they were landing in Germany first meant that there were some passengers that would be getting off when we landed in Germany for refueling. Also, it meant that the front seats would be taken up by these Macedonia soldiers! I can tell you that the baggage team didn’t take the news too well. I didn’t either. We wouldn’t be rewarded for our hard-earned work. We boarded the plane and we noticed that the rest of the members of our class had been already seated. So we had to find open seats that were sporadically located throughout the plane! At this point, I was so tired. I felt like I did a full shift at UPS. The thought of finally going home would make up for the disappointment of not getting a good seat. Where’s the flight attendant? I need that complimentary beverage now!

DECEMBER 18 – I have to give the flight team credit. When we landed in Germany we were asked to exit the plane so that they could refuel and clean the plane. When we got back on the baggage team was asked to move forward to take seats up front that were more comfortable. This was better than nothing because we still had 8 more hours until we would land in Bangor, Maine. We were back up in the air again this time with smiles on our faces and adequate legroom. The flight attendants had spaced everyone out evenly throughout the plane to make sure no one was uncomfortable. It was after 6 hours that the captain announced: “We were back in American airspace, welcome home guys!” It was then a rouse of applause erupted from the plane. I too felt a wave of excitement rise up inside me. I couldn’t help but reflect back on my newfound friends that I have left behind in Iraq. Would I ever see them again? I don’t know but one thing for sure is that it was time for me to come home. The time was slowly approaching for me to say goodbye to these guys that I had been with for 15 months. I know that there were some bruised and hurt feelings among the team members but I believe that this is normal. I believe that the more that you are involved in a relationship with someone whether it be business or pleasure there will always be the risk you will end up hurting someone or getting hurt yourself. What counts is if you possess the courage to say “I was wrong”.

DECEMBER 19 – We arrived at Fort Riley, Kansas in due fashion. We were huddled into an assembly area and seated in some bleachers where there were civilian workers waiting on us. The supervisor of the group introduced himself and welcomed us back home. “Guys welcome back home. We are going to do something that we haven’t done before. We are going to work extra hard to get you guys out of here before the Christmas holiday. We are going to need your full cooperation to make this happen. We are handing out schedules of where you are to be each day. If you follow this schedule we will have no problem in making our deadline.” A loud cheer came from the bleachers. It was no doubt that the next two days would be insanely crazy. At this point, I think we are up for the challenge.

DECEMBER 22 – We made it! All equipment has been turned in and accounted for. All paperwork regarding personnel matters, pay, leave, and next-duty assignments have been signed. We were on our way home! We cleared our barracks and our baggage was loaded back onto buses headed for the Kansas City airport. It was about 4:00 a.m. when the buses came. All of the soldiers from my class were standing outside saying their last goodbyes to each other. What disturbed me the most was that there were certain teams where the members didn’t say a word to each other when they got on the bus! I was able to find a few members of my team. The first person I found was the officer that I worked with from day one. “Sir, I just want to thank you for coaching, training, and mentoring me.” His response to me was mutual but I could tell by his demeanor that he wanted this conversation to quickly end. I found a few more team members and expressed my thanks to them and promised to keep in touch when I got back home. Call me a fool if you like but I felt a sense of loss when I got on the bus. We were 11 guys that have been together for 15 months and no one was making an effort to end our time together on a good note. It’s sad that it had to come down to this. I arrived in Charlotte at 10:37 a.m. to the cheers of supporting family, friends, and people who just wanted to welcome us back home. That night before I went to bed I sat down and wrote my team members this email, it read:

Hello Team Dirty,
This is me, MSG Lewis. It’s about 11 p.m. and of course, I am fully awake while my family is still asleep in their beds. I know it will be just a matter of days before I will be back on schedule. The nature of this email is to do something that I felt was necessary. I have to confess that when we all were at Fort Riley I thought we would have one time to be together but the circumstances, be what they may prevent us from doing so.

All of you have known me to be the passive, quiet, and jovial one of the group. I never claimed to be the best soldier on the team but I was always open to learning anything. We have been together for 15 months! While at Fort Riley I noticed by the other teams that it was time for everyone to go home to their families. I observed also the bruised and irritated feelings everyone had towards each other.

You all know that I am a man of faith. Even though my beliefs are different from yours there is one thing that is always true for me. That is to say “thank you”. I want to thank each and every one of you for being on the team with me. I thank you for being who you are and just doing your part to help when those days got hard for me. I won’t bore you with the details but each and every one of you has played a significant role in my life. I also believe that living isn’t about similarities but differences. I know that there are things that we don’t like about each other and that we were never best buddies. In my eyes, those differences made you all unique and at times fun to be with.

So in closing, I say again “Thank you” and I pray for your continued success in whatever endeavor you choose to pursue in your life. I know we ‘men’ are not emotional creatures but I felt that I couldn’t close this chapter of my life without saying “thank you”.

Take care and God bless,

MSG Roy (Big Lew) Lewis

DECEMBER 23 – I will be spending this Sunday at my parent’s house in Alabama. It will be the first time that my parents will have seen me since I left for Iraq. Well, it is time to close this chapter of my life. I hope that I have given you all who have read my chronicles a snapshot view of what it is like to be a soldier serving in Iraq. I have attempted to present to you the insights behind the people, places, and culture of the Iraqi people. I am equally grateful for this project because it kept me occupied with wanting to see it fully completed. This project has served its purpose in so many ways. Many of you have read my articles and have replied back with your comments. You have expressed that you have gained a new understanding of the ‘War of Terrorism’. The video footage of the Iraqi people has given you a new understanding of their culture as well. I want to say “thank you” to you all. Now that I am back on American soil reunited with my family and friends I know that I will be asked about my opinion about this war. There are so many ways to answer this question. I will say that even though it is an election year despite what any political candidate might say American troops will still be here in Iraq at least for a while. Secondly, Iraqi security forces are growing more and more dependent on American support and are (in my opinion) not showing any signs of independence at all. Thirdly, this is a country of alliances. There are so many different special interest groups operating within this country that the people are in some cases forced to choose sides. This is so evident in the makeup of the National Police units that I have had the privilege to work with. Some units are all Shia or all Sunni. The people here have come to accept corruption as a standard way of life. Equality and fairness are something that is foreign to them. Lastly, I know they do not understand the freedoms that I enjoy as an American. The freedom that I enjoy has been brought with a price. It’s been paid for by the blood of people who believed in this freedom and were willing to die for it by any means necessary. The people of Iraq are not at that point yet. They are not like the early American settlers who were just farmers who decided to take on the mighty British Army to be free. Will they get that way? The potential is there. I can see an undercurrent of dissension among the people that is growing each day. These are people who want the freedom to raise their children in a country that is free and open. The only problem is that they just don’t know how to get there.