Are You Ready To Go Back?

The other day my boss asked me if I was ready to go back to Iraq. My immediate answer was an empathic "NO".

He said to me,"You could have taken a few seconds before you answered."

I laughed and waited a few seconds before telling him, "Just because I don't want to go back doesn't mean I'm not willing or don't understand why I need to be there. And just because I'm willing to go doesn't mean I should be happy that I am leaving behind family, friends and everything else that is nice and good in the world for that place...the place I may not come back from standing up."

My job as a senior Warrant Officer in my Battalion is a position of some responsibility not only to the Battalion mission but to my fellow Warrant Officers and aviators. To teach and mentor them to the best of my ability, to insure that they are prepared for what lies ahead. Since May we've been going non-stop trying to prepare for the war ahead...and it's tough sometimes to get everything done that needs to get done (at least as far as I'm concerned). Add to that things like aerial gunnery, my Annual Aviator Proficiency Readiness Test (AAPRT), flight physicals, US Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) Aviation Resource Management Survey (ARMS) and a few other things and you might understand why I feel worn down and not at all enthusiastic about going to the sand box again.

But in spite of all that, I understand the need and accept the responsibility involved with moving to and commencing operations a combat zone. Hopefully we won't be required to do this too many more times. But no matter how many times we are required to answer the call there will always be a soldier standing there ready to pick up the slack...just don't expect us to be happy about it.