The tour is nearing a half-way point, and the section is beginning to look empty, with some people on vacation, and other sent out to Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) to replace personnel on vacation. I spent a week and a half at FOB Wilson, in Zhari distict, which was fairly quiet. There were no rocket attacks, no gate or escort duties, but on the other hand there were only two fresh meals a day. Lunch was either rations, or cold cuts that were layed out at the kitchen. I typically ate the cold cuts, because rations every day begin to get depressing after a while. And who would turn down a good sandwich?

The FOB is a different reality than KAF. It is much closer to the actual fighting, and virtually every day, wounded Afghan soldiers and police were brought in for treatment. The worst case was a mass-casualty from an ambush that wounded ten Afghan policemen, of whom three died. Every available Canadian on the FOB was there to assist the doctors in triage, and in some cases, treatment, of the casualties before they were flown out to the Role 3 Multinational hospital at KAF. Those men sacrificed everything they had for their families, and in so doing, made me feel all the stronger about the need to continue helping them. These were not men who simply sat back and let us do their fighting for them, they waded into the fray, and fell because they believed that a better future was possible for them and their families. My sincere respect is earned.