Letter from Afghanistan, 13 Nov 04
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Everything has been going well and I am getting busier with my new Kandak (Afghan BN). I am mentoring an Afghan Command Sgt. Major who is very hard working and dedicated to the cause. Lucky for me he speaks a little english and I am getting better at Dari so it is working out well. They have just finished Ramadan and are celebrating their festival of Eat (spelling). We had breakfast and lunch with them today for Eat and they served cookies, raisins, nuts for breakfast and rice with chicken for lunch. Between meals we were talking with local Afghan commanders and soldiers while reviewing their kitchen facilities. Don't ask about their conditions. Since they are on holiday for Eat we will be doing good will visits to several villages tomorrow. Yesterday we had an awards ceremony. We received our combat patch for being in a combat zone for over 30 days. I also received the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) for actions in Herat. If you have not seen one they are a very prestigious award for the Infantry. They are awarded for soldiers that have been in direct combat action which we were during the riots of Herat and the rocket attack at the UN compound.
All of the soldiers in our team are doing well.The Afghans are very happy to see the US here and they like to see that the ANA and the US soldiers work closely with each other. Since we work closely with the ANA and the local people I have been learning a lot about their culture and the similarities are amazing to our culture. The people and soldiers have the same concerns and issues as we do in America but not to the same degree. The soldiers constantly tell me how hard working the Americans are and they don't understand why we don't rest more often. I think I will learn that lesson from them when I get home.
If I don't get a chance to talk to everyone I hope that you have a good Thanksgiving and Christmas.
1SG Larry Kerwood
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