Half-Gan Man

12 July

OK, I am back at my home base now, and it looks like that was our last trip visiting troops before we leave. I am glad for that, actually. Traveling around this country is hard and tiring, and I am exhausted. We only have a short time to go before this deployment is over, and so we will concentrate on getting our office in shape in time for a hand-off to the new Unit Ministry Team that will be replacing us.

But I wanted to share a few photos that made the last trip a success for me. When I first arrived here last year I was told of a man I had to meet when I was out and about. The Soldiers call him "Half-Gan Man," and you can now tell why. I am sorry if that sounds like an insult, but I actually think it is a term of endearment. The Soldiers love this guy, and look forward to visiting his shop at the bazaar near the city of Ghazni. And so I got a chance to meet him, and he immediately charmed my socks off. He was trying to sell me blue stones that he said were "pure gold," but otherwise he was a lot of fun. His English was pretty good as well, so I was impressed. He also charged $2 for a picture of him (and his shop was covered with pictures of him with Soldiers), so it was obvious he made quite a bit of cash on the side from be photographed! He didn't seem to mind the attention at all.

It will be a busy week for me as I am preparing to preach this Sunday, as well as host a movie night on Friday (we'll be watching "We Are Marshall"), and give a brief presentation to our command group on stress and resiliency. The Army is big on this new concept of Soldier Resiliency (in order to avoid burn-out), and we Chaplains are supposed to be the experts. Nobody realizes that we are just as burned-out as everyone else! So please pray for me, as I will definitely need the help and support to make it strong to the end!