to Germany, and beyond

Just sitting in a German airport waiting for our flight to Kuwait. So far so good...and safe. It was a nice long flight over the ocean, and so far have been traveling over 24 hours! haha and still got a good chunk ahead of us. All I need is a shower! Hopefully I'll be able to get internet shortly after we get there so I can keep this here blog updated. That's all I got for now...getting on the plane soon!

I'm finally coming home from the desert. It may only be for a week, but I'm so excited to be with my fam and friends. We're moving today to a different building that does NOT have the internet machine, so I'm signing off until further notice.

I hope all of you get a piece of my love that I'm sending from the desert! I hope you all have a safe and very wonderful Christmas! God bless you.

looks like love

Lately me and God have been getting to know each other in a different way than I ever have experienced...and through this all I've realized two main things
1) I'm embarrassed of my past...almost afraid of it, knowing that at any second it can sneak up behind me and haunt me from any direction.
2) I think I might be afraid of love...not just love, but the thought of Jesus loving me unconditionally, not thinking twice, not asking questions. To me, it seems almost too good to be true and I'm afraid of accepting it and then having it taken away from me. I know His love is constant--because that's what the Bible tells me--but the only humanly love I've seen (that wasn't from my family) was fake and short-lived...maybe not even love at all...and it hurt. It hurt to be loved.

These two thoughts have been my companion lately...
Today I was running on the treadmill at the gym. Normally I have my rock mix that I listen to while I run...it pumps me up, ya know? But today, I just had it on random. I had just gotten lots of new music from a friend of mine so naturally a new song came up that I hadn't heard before. I didn't catch all the words, but the ones I did catch set my heart on fire.
I think it was written from a guy to a girl...but that's not the way I heard it in my head. No. I sang it with my whole heart...to God.

p.s. at the bottom is the video for it, so you can hear it while you read the lyrics.

Looks Like Love
by: Needtobreathe

Take another step
Don’t give up on me just yet
We could take a chance
We could find a child’s romance
At least we’d love until we can’t

I wont run when it looks like love
I won’t hide beneath the fear
Of how my past has come undone

I wont run when it looks like love
I can’t spend another night alone
Regretting what I’ve done
So, I won’t run

The breeze can only be
When she overcomes the heat
Our hearts can only shake
When there’s risk that they could break
Yeah it’s a chance that I will take

I wont run when it looks like love
I won’t hide beneath the fear
Of how my past has come undone

I wont run when it looks like love
I can’t spend another night alone
Regretting what I’ve done
So, I won’t run

Raise your head
Its time to say
Those words that I have left unsaid
I’ve slept through the sunrise
And I turned
Away every time it got bright

this video was the ONLY one on youtube for this song...so disappointed.
the song, though...amazing

I'll be home for Christmas

So I sang a song.
Maybe it's because I was just bored...
maybe it's because I just love to sing...
most definitely it's because this song has been stuck in my head
because this year, when I sing it...
it's actually TRUE!

I'll be home for Christmas...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCRiscg5wRA

...and I can't WAIT!

Living the 12 hour days...

So we started 12 hour operations here...for training. We're on a simulated FOB (kinda like a base overseas) and are doing super secret stuff. All I can say is, thank goodness we're only doing 12 hour operations. Another unit here gets the pleasure of 24 hour ops. So we got it easy. Real life scenarios are included with US military who come in to play the part of Iraqi civilians and detainees. It's actually a good time. I'm definitely getting close to my unit...almost too close. haha. But definitely feeling more and more equipped to do the job over in the sandbox for real.

We're getting into the Christmas spirit here too. Everywhere we drive, we are diligent-and despite some Christmas song haters-to keep the radio tuned to the Christmas Carol center. I never want to leave that van when we arrive at our destination, because by the time we get to where we're going, there is so much Christmas joy built up in that van that it just feels wrong to let it get out. haha. We even got a little taste of NE here in the sweet southern state--it SNOWED today! I even sang myself I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas. I'm so excited for Christmas...I might even post up a Christmas song. Only if you're lucky...haha

alright dad... this one's for you!

Acronyms...
gotta love 'em. I honestly don't think the Army could function without them! If you've ever been around somebody in the military... I KNOW you've heard some of these before. However, sometimes we make up our own...sometimes for business, sometimes for comic relief.

Here we go Acronyms 101...
QRF-Quick Reaction Force
BUB-Battle Update Brief
SOP-Standard Operating Procedure
IED-Improvised Explosive Device
TIF-Theatre Internment Facility
FOB-Forward Operating Base
TTP-Tactics Technical Procedures
DFAC-Dining Facility
FOUO-For Official Use Only
TCP-Traffic Control Point
COIN-Counter Insurgency
NCOIC-Non Commissioned Officer In Command
XO-Executive Officer
ALOC-Army Logistics Operating Center
CYA-Cover Your Ass (Actually used...but not official haha)
PVT-Personally Vaccinated Turtle
PFC-Perfect For Combustion
SPC-Sponsored Paper Carrier
SGT-Sticky Gun Turret
SSG-Semi Special Gun
...and it goes down hill from there (the last 5, be known, are not real and are not used...that's just one of the things we do when we get bored in class here-hehe)

So there ya go, I hope you got somethin outta that...if anything, two and a half laughs (daddio).
I'm just here, trying to broaden your base of knowledge.
...And just remember in SGT situations, CYA.
Thank You.

amazing grace

this in response to a request from my friend...and of course i was ecstatic to oblige...it involves singing! she asked me to sing this song, but i told her that i don't have my guitar since it's on its lonely way to iraq. so she suggested i just sing it without the guitar...so that's exactly what i did. this song means a lot to me and to her. i hope you enjoy it too! :)

amazing grace...

true outdoor experience...hiking

This last Sunday our unit decided to load up and take off into the beautiful wilderness of the Franklin mountains in El Paso... and I'm so glad we did. The path we decided on, we were told, was going to be about a 5 hour round trip and it would take us to the very tippity top of one of the peaks. Sounds easy enough, huh? Well, it wasn't too bad. Extremely beautiful and quite exhilarating. You wouldn't guess it because it's Texas, but up at the top, it was fa-reezing. We stopped to eat lunch up at the top as we breathlessly took in the scenery (it was really that pretty...we weren't just breathless because of the long hike :) We could even see a good chunk of Mexico from the top-including a huge Mexican flag! Check out the beauty...The middle peak was our destination, but we started on the other side of the mountain.

We caught beautiful glimpses of the sun as it peaked its head from behind the mountain just as we were starting out.

This is me, about halfway up...starting to get chilly, but almost there! El Paso was on both sides of the mountain range. That was kinda cool. There were only a few places on our hike where you could see ALL of El Paso at one time.

This is the view from the peak! This is actually looking into Mexico. 7400 feet above sea level here.

Just resting before the long hike down... All-in-all it was an amazing day. A great break in the monotony. Hooray for hiking!

Just don't know how

For some reason writing songs has been coming real easy to me lately.
I just wanted to share the lyrics to the latest one I wrote.
and because of my nifty webcam, I'll share the song too!! Rough recording...mind you.

Just Don't Know How

In the darkness of my heart
you come inside and shed some light
I may not notice but you come on in and
restore my soul, you make it whole

In the day when words fly out,
You touch my hand and do not shout
You softly guide me, stand beside me
Making good of what I do wrong

And I---I want to love you even more than I ever have before
But I---Just don't know how

When fear it comes and makes me tremble
You promise me that you can handle
All the knots that tie me up
Just give the mangled mess to you

When everything seems out of hand
And I can't do a single thing
You reassure me, let me know that
You know just what's best for me

And I---I want to give it all to you. Never think twice
But I---Just don't know how