Thanksgiving 07

Every Dining Facility in the Army goes all-out for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Even the small outposts get some kind of I’m at small base in Iraq. Instead of serving two meals today, they served a Thanksgiving dinner from 1200-1700. I had to wait about 15 minutes because they opened the DFAC a little late. When I walked in, I saw how much work they had put into the meal. They had all the trimmings of your standard American turkey dinner, a giant 3 foot square cake and banners and decorations on all the walls. Every table had “Happy Thanksgiving” place mats, and a bottle of sparkling cider. It was a strange scene, because ¾ of the diners were Iraqi Army, and all of the cooks were Turkish or Fillipino. I doubt either of them recognize the American holiday.

Here, the days really have no meaning. November 22 simply means that I’m about 6 weeks away from taking leave. I had forgotten that it even was Thanksgiving until I was in line at the DFAC and they didn’t open at the usual time. When I got inside and sat down to eat, I wished that it had been another day. Everything there reminded me of home and my family. I didn’t want to be reminded of how much I miss them.