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"...coming to terms with this permanent state of combat readiness..."

A remarkable article by an American Iraqi veteran on being home:

"Jumping back into civilian life headlong, like I'd originally attempted, proved
both disastrous and shortsighted. And coming to terms with this permanent state
of combat readiness has made me realize just how much I miss war (or parts of
it), and how lucky--and twisted--I am to be able to even write those words. I
miss the camaraderie. I miss the raw excitement."

"I miss that daily sense of purpose, survive or die, that simply can't be
replicated in everday existence. I miss standing for something more than myself,
even if I never figured out just what the hell that something was supposed to
be."

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/19/pilgrims-progress/?scp=3&sq=matt%20gallagher&st=cse
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Mari Rydings said…
I just finished reading The Face of War by Martha Gelhorn. She was a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War, WWII, Vietnam, and many other war. (Her writing is phenomenal, but she is better known as Hemingway's third wife). Anyway, the book is a collection of articles she wrote for Collier's magazine about her experiences in each of these wars. Several times she comments how difficult it was for her to come back to America and try to resume a "normal" life after what she had seen. She always sought out former soldiers and war colleagues b/c they were the only people who understood. Thanks for sharing this.
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