Getting ready to move out . . .

What a blessing from the Lord! David called yesterday morning and we were able to talk until his phone card ran out (about 45-50 minutes). It was almost noon for me, past bedtime for him.

He’s doing OK, except for lack of sleep. There are 50 guys to a tent, sleeping on small cots. Dave says he can lie on his back on his cot, extend his arms, and touch the two guys on either side of him. It’s past midnight when things quiet down, and by 0400, the noises begin again.

Chow is good, in spite of the long walk. In addition to “regular” food, there’s a salad bar, a pasta bar, a pizza bar, and a freezer full of ice cream desserts.

As a security measure, the base is kept dark at night. It is constantly being watched from outside the walls, and the civilian workers on the base also present security challenges.

His battalion’s current focus is on getting ready to move out of the base into their designated Areas of Operations (AOs). Dave can only say that they’ll be in isolated areas (very likely without running water) that are known to be high danger areas. An advance party went to one of the AOs a couple days ago and hit a roadside bomb. We’re grateful that they were in a super-armored Humvee, so there were no casualties.

When Dave’s group arrives at their AO, he and several other corpsmen will be setting up a mini Aid Station for treating casualties. For significant injuries, they call in the med-evac helicopters, which are only a few minutes away, so casualties can be transported to the regular Battalion Aid Station.

So Dave is spending most of his time during these few days in training classes, learning things he’s mostly not allowed to tell us about. He sends his love to everyone back home, and really appreciates your prayers. He said it was possible that this could be the last phone call he'll be able to make for months. We pray that's not the case, but we're constantly reminded that "no news is good news."

"This I declare of the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
he is my God, and I am trusting him. "
--- from Psalm 91, "The Soldier's Psalm"
(See the link to the left for a good article on this Psalm.)