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As my seventh month back from Afghanistan nears its end, I’d rather squint when reflecting on my progress since my return.  Or just avoid looking at it completely. I was very motivated when I first got back not to become another veteran statistic- procrastination, disorganization, lack of motivation- all those looming “ation”s you get warned about coming back from a deployment. For the most part, in the beginning, I was on top of my game.  I would use my time constructively, whether working on something for others, or myself, and did a good job setting aside time for myself.  The...

This past week I’ve been going through the thousands of photos (about 10,000 or so) from my deployment in Afghanistan. It’s so strange in a way, looking back at where I was not more than a few months ago. Things seem like they’re slipping back into the reality I used to know, but seeing those photographs got me thinking, “Wow, I was there what seems like yesterday!” As I paced my way through the images, all the memories and different feelings associated with them came back: a photo of our end of mission Transfer of Authority reminded me of how...

It’s funny to me how the mind works sometimes. My girlfriend and I went out to a movie the other day and when it was over we began waltzing back over to the parking garage. We ascended the stairs and the car hunt began. It wasn’t much of a hunt since the car was conveniently located close to the stairwell. But as we walked along the outer edge of the parking garage that night (you know how the rest of the world sits over that edge and you can take everything in from there?), a funny thing happened: the skeleton...

This weekend I had my first drill with my unit. It came way too soon. I think everyone felt that way – none of us wanted to put the uniform back on yet. Overall it was a very stress-free weekend. Very lax. We had a small welcome home banquet the first day, and afterward, old deployment friends got together for drinks and food. That was be the best part of the weekend – just seeing everyone outside of the deployment and hearing about their “new” lives was interesting. Things got even more interesting on day two. We were supposed to...

As the deployment clock ticked in Afghanistan, the longer we were there, the more care packages we seemed to get.Initially, when I went overseas, my parents were anxious to hear from me. They wanted to know what was going on and where I was. I tried to get into contact with them as often as possible, and give them what little information I could about what was going on.But as time went on, the busier I got, I didn’t keep the lines of communication as open as they would have liked. But my parents knew one thing for sure: we...

The other day I was reading about the five year positions being opened to create continuity in the mission in Afghanistan. I understand the argument, but I can’t even begin to imagine what it would be like to be away from friends and family for that amount of time. To be somewhere so different, in a combat environment, for such a long period of time. It takes a great amount of resilience. I’ve met people with that resilience. I’ve talked to people who extended for the maximum three years in country, and also met those who did back-to-back tours (three,...

When working through problems in life, at times I turn to friends for a new perspective on things, or some basic insight.  If definitely helps to keep me from overthinking or hitting dead ends. Recently, I was talking to one of my friends about a few things happening in my life. One thing he said, which is pretty obvious, but just brings me back to what I forget at times, “you’re dealing with a lot of new animals all at once.” I wonder why so much is happening to me what feels like all at once? I forget that I’ve...

This new year, I find myself focusing on a few important parts of my life: school, health and finances. School is just around the corner, check. I’ve been hitting the gym and eating well, check. Finances…? While deploying did give me a good start financially, I’m finding I can’t rely on that too much. There comes a time when you just have to bite the bullet and get back out into the job market. As I began putting together my resume, I was almost stumped for a bit. How do I even translate my deployment to the civilian world? I...

There's nothing like spending holidays with those you love. And after spending last Christmas in a DFAC, this year's was something special.I noticed there were some changes this year. The family had changed with the addition of a sister-in-law and a nephew, and one of my brothers was in South Korea. So much was different, and family kept talking about last year as if I had been there to celebrate with them. I missed so much, but I was able to catch up in these past few days.Here and there I see things that have changed. Things that are different....

A great thing about being back is the ability to engage in social activities- unlimited! I love seeing shows of all sorts (music, theater, comedy), and going to see a band the other night just brought back great memories and great feelings. Although many things can change while you’re overseas, there are some things that don’t change. It’s a refreshing feeling. It’s a great feeling. I love that I can still find enjoyment in many of the same ways as before, it reminds me that I don’t have to let my deployment define me. Afghanistan was a long year of...