We finished out our last combat mission a few days ago. No more looking for bombs and bad guys. This morning, however, was my last personal trip outside of the wire, and without a doubt one of the most successful missions in all the time I've been here.

It would be difficult for most of you to fully appreciate the enormous amount of candy, clothing, shoes and toy filled boxes I've received from families and friends. Try as I might it hasn't been easy to give all of it out. Even after the last big giveaway at the primary school we still had another fifteen small boxes of stuff left. The Lt. and I planned one more trip outside to see the kids, give them some gifts, and, most importantly, give me a chance to say goodbye.

Last night I spent a few hours separating the remaining items into bags. I prepared fifteen of them, knowing that most likely there would only be a few kids. Normally I only get a chance to see five or six of them at a time. That is just the way it works. If Elmo is out then Rafudi is home sleeping. If all of Elmo's sisters and brothers are there then Jasmine and Nicoma aren't. The mornings have been so cold lately I wouldn't have been surprised if all the kids stayed home and snuggled around the fire instead of going out to play. But the second our truck pulled past the barriers and I saw the children I knew my assumptions were out the window. There were already twenty kids out in the lot playing and more on the way. Every single one of my kids was there.

When they spotted us they went berserk. They ran to the road and danced and cheered as we drove toward them. Rafudi was front and center as usual. He stood in front of the vehicle yelling, "I love you! I love you!" I got the feeling that he and many of the other children thought that I had already left without saying goodbye to them.

As I stepped out from the door Rafudi rushed up and threw his arms around me. The other kids rushed up, and I shook the hand of each, many of them several times. Nicoma and a few of the other girls had red pen on her eye lids. The girls are always trying to apply make-up, often using dirt, pen or anything else they can get their hands on. They must have known that today was a special occasion.

The most pressing questions the kids had were, "Where have you been?" and "When are you leaving for America?" I told the kids that this would be my last visit, and I was flying back to America very soon. Apparently they considered that the wrong answer. They yelled "No! America no good! You stay here!" Elmo and her sister Irjoey told me, "Father and mother say 'Joey no leave to America. He stay here.'" I took that to mean that they were sad to hear that I was leaving also.

It took more than an hour to hand out everything to the kids. Luckily I brought an extra role of plastic bags and divided the toys so that each kid received a nice size bag of loot. Everyone was very happy and they jumped around, sang and shouted for my attention. They put on their new shoes and socks, tied bandanas around their heads and shoved handfuls of candy into their mouths.

After all of the goodies were gone and I had to start saying goodbye, Rafudi and a few of the other kids became quite. Elmo became very shy. I don't think she wanted to say goodbye. I took her hand and then placed my hand over my heart, as a sign of respect and friendship. I told Saham that this wasn't goodbye forever, and that I would talk to her again soon. I told the kids that I was going back to America, but that I would think about them often. I thanked them for being my sadiqis (friends) and for all of the small gifts they have given me over the months. Many of the younger kids did not understand that I wouldn't be coming back. They were all so happy about the new toys they had gotten that they couldn't focus on much else. They asked, "You going to America tomorrow?" I would answer that I was. They followed up with, "You come day after tomorrow and give me shoes?"

Packing up the truck to leave I gave out tons of high-fives and shook many hands. Lots of the kids ran up and hugged me. Rafudi told me to call his father's phone when I get home and be sure to ask to talk to him. He stayed quietly by my side, holding my hand as long as he could. He probably gave me five hugs before I finally closed the door to my truck and drove away.

I drove away with my window down and the kids chanting my name and running along side the truck. Ali asked through the window if I would wave to him from the plane as I flew away. Ronda agreed that this would be a good idea and asked me to do the same for her. I promised I would. The kids ran with the truck until we entered the gate. As the Lt. and I entered the camp I looked in my side mirror and saw the kids standing in the middle of the road watching us disappear from view.

It was sad to say goodbye. I'll miss those kids. They have made this deployment so much more fun than it otherwise would have been. I have three sisters and a brother back home that I have been without for a long time. In Iraq I had twenty little kids that thought of me as family. Saham and Rafudi were like a little brother and sister. It's been great to watch them grow this past year. I remember meeting them on my first trip outside the wire. They seemed so young then, and when I think of them now they are completely different people. I'm glad that I got the chance to see them one last time. I have been worried for the last few weeks that I'd have to go home without explaining or saying goodbye. My last visit with the children could not have gone better. While the fact that I might not ever see them again nags at me, I know that I'll be able to send them letters and gifts from home. Every once in a while I'll call their father to check up on the family and let them know that I'm doing well. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be able to come back here under different circumstances and see them as grown men and women. They are great kids and I know that they'll do amazing things with their lives. I look forward someday to seeing what they have become.

Photo taken by Lt. Paetz