Narrative

Staring Death in the Face

I remember how I felt deploying for the first time in my army career. I remember how I sat on the plane headed to Iraq scared out of my mind. I could not imagine what was in store for me when I was to step off the plane. I started looking out the window as we started to descend. It was pitch black I could not see anything, which made my worries even worse. Next thing I know the plane had landed and I could not help but want to turn around and go back home. It was too late for that; I knew that I must move forward. I had just started praying in my head that the war would be over quickly.

Stepping off the plane was only the first fear I had to accomplished, but I knew there were many more to come during that deployment. A few months had passed and I had been attached to the 2nd infantry division, which is something that terrified me because that unit was trained to go directly into combat situations. Next thing I know we were called out for a mission early the following morning. We received a tip that a couple leaders that we have been searching for had been discovered in a nearby area. Driving to the area was the easiest thing from that mission. As I pulled up I heard the gunfire, and I had immediately became tense. I pulled up, jumped out, and got into position beside my hummvee.

I looked up to check my surroundings until a bullet had flown past my ear. My heart went berserk and felt at the time as if it was to bust out of my chest. I had quickly got my composure and grabbed my M4 (rifle) and began to aim, and that is when I noticed that a comrade of ours was shot approximately about 20 feet to the right of my position. I did not want to look too long because I refused to have that happen to me. I had taken a moment to view my surroundings so that I would know all the positions that we were taking fire. I first noticed two people that were in the window of a building across the...