For a while I've been meaning to write about the prayers that are sung over loud speakers across Kabul, throughout all times of the day. At Camp Phoenix we could forget how different the world is just outside the post's barriers, but the prayers keep that reality fresh in our minds.
There are many mosques within earshot of Phoenix. They have loudspeakers posted on or near their rooftops, so that the man singing the prayers inside can be heard in the surrounding community. The tunes are mysterious and sad sounding to me, and are sung in Arabic - not the local Pashto or Dari.
Earlier this week when shots came over Phoenix's walls, I thought it somewhat dramatic that underneath the noise of gunfire I could hear the prayers of these holy men.
This post has been attacked once in its history from what I've been told, and I honestly doubted that we'd ever make use of the bunkers that surround us on all sides. Earlier this week they were full.
The incident started with a handful of gunshots heard in the near distance. I stood outside (inside post walls) my office, listening, trying to gauge which direction they were coming from and how close. Many more shots followed and they progressively got closer until finally rounds started coming over our walls. Moments later an alarm was sounding and people were hustling to the nearest bunker.
SSG Phil Kannady came to where I was at the office where we were to remain, per our orders. We both dawned our protective gear and monitored the radios to get some idea of what was going on. Most of the time we just waited, listening to the sporadic shots. It was as we were waiting there that I heard the prayers coming from the mosques. At that time nothing about the situation had been confirmed, and I found myself wondering if the men firing the shots had waited until this holy time of day to attack.
My job on Camp Phoenix requires me to do exactly what I did in such a situation, sit there and wait. I wanted to engage and to fight if there was need. All soldiers, no matter their jobs, train to fight. I think a lot of us want to be put to the test, to see if we have what it takes when it matters most. But that night all we could do was hunker down.
As it turns out, a firefight nearby - not involving our boys - was close enough that rounds came our way. Fortunately no one here was injured.
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