Hello from LT John Miller Jan 9 2007

Hello all from Afghanistan. I am back in Herat. I actually got back on January 3 a little faster than expected and I am getting settled back in. For those of you that don't know I was able to go home on a 2 week leave for Christmas. I left Herat Dec 8th and I arrived home Dec 14th and left home Dec 30th. I had a great time and enjoyed seeing everyone. As expected time went by really fast. Hopefully if all goes well I will be back for good in June. It was a lot of fun and we really made the most out of our time together. Lots of visits and some real good family time. It was a lot easier getting adjusted to being home than it is being back here.

It was really interesting hearing how people feel about the war. I received a lot of support and thanks from total strangers when they saw me in uniform going through or waiting in the airports. It was actually odd sometimes because many had comments like; we really support you and the troops even if we don't support the war. Kind of feels weird when a total stranger says we support you but not what you do. I understand what people are trying to say but it still sounded funny every time I heard it. I was even more convinced after talking to most people that the American public really does not have a good understanding of what is going on in Afghanistan. It is not the same as Iraq. I could go on forever on this topic so I will let it rest for now.

We are on the down swing now so we are all trying to get motivated again. Everything seems to have been just fine here without me so I recommend they send me home and let the Afghans take over their lives. That does not appear to be an option however. I will be getting back out to the Dam and schools real soon. I was able to read an article in a paper that the Army puts out in Afghanistan on how well the Army Engineers did on building the dam I have been giving you all updates on. However no mention of the Navy I guess the one-day they spent out there counts more than our months of work. I am not bitter (well maybe a little). In reality the villagers did all of the hard manual labor we provided support and guidance.

I need to clarify the last update picture of Navy over Army. I guess I did not realize so many people would not get the joke. The Army mascot is a mule and the Navy beat the Army in football so the joke was John (in the Navy) sitting on a mule (Army mascot) get it, Navy over Army. This set of pictures is of me having a little fun before I left for home. We were on a mission in Herat and on the way back we stopped at an old Russian compound for a rest. The Afghan Army is now turning it into a museum. This mural caught our attention. The video is hilarious. Remember there is not much entertainment here so sometimes the little things really amuse us. Take care and for all those I saw at Christmas thanks for your kind words and thoughts. For those that I missed I am sorry but time just went by too fast and I will catch you this summer.

Take care and keep in touch.
LT John Miller US NARMY