Tis The Season

I don't want to be reminded that I am far from my family for the holidays.

Well, I have been quite the grouch for a couple weeks now. I had planned on just trolling through the season, getting by without much thought about the holidays. I almost made it.

The closer it gets to Christmas, the more I am reminded this is the season of good will toward men. Friends and family wish me well and send presents. The local radio station in Baghdad plays Christmas music that I hear on the bus riding back and forth to work.

We have a Christmas tree in my office and in my room. I tried hard to forget about it this year as I live and work in a land far from home where bad guys want to kill me. I wanted to keep my head focused on the fact that I am still in a bad place. Even more than that though, 

I don't want to be reminded that I am far from my family for the holidays.

With my time here coming to an end, I am getting more excited. As much as I have come to appreciate the great things we are doing here, I am so ready to leave this all behind and return to my family and friends. I want to get out of this funk I am in and keep my head held high, it's almost over.