15 Aug 2013

Christmas in July

Southwest Asia is hot! How hot, you ask? Ask any one of the Airmen conducting base defense operations wearing 25 to 40 pounds of extra gear designed to protect them from dangers when it's 110 degrees. At times it can be difficult to keep their morale up, to say the least, but not on Aug. 8! The 64th Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron and Force

26 Jul 2013

Host nation invites Grand Slam officers to Iftar dinner

Sunday I was lucky enough to be invited to an Iftar dinner hosted by a local military leader at his Falcon Sanctuary. Iftar literally means "to break fast," and refers to the evening meal after sunset when Muslims break their fast during the Islamic month of Ramadan.Annually, the military leader invites 60 coalition military officers, including 30

11 Jul 2013

Mass casualty exercise at 64th AEG

It's 8 a.m. at the vehicle maintenance facility as an Airman puts new tires on a Humvee. His coworkers are going about their morning routine unloading a shipment of oxygen and acetylene bottles from the back of a delivery truck with a forklift. As the pallet of oxygen bottles is being lifted from the back of the truck, an unsecured bottle sways and

25 Jun 2013

Chaplain’s thoughts on ‘perception’

When I was wing chaplain at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea, I went with the security forces commander one evening to visit a seriously injured Airman in the intensive care unit at a large hospital in the city of Suwon.Neither one of us were familiar with the hospital, so we wandered around using the Braille method to discover the ICU. After

19 Apr 2013

Doolittle's Continuing Mission

Today marks the 71st anniversary of Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. From an undisclosed location in Southwest Asia, the 34th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, Doolittle's own Thunderbirds, will fly four very special American flags into combat to commemorate the event. They do so to celebrate one of the most inspiring missions of World War II, and one of

19 Apr 2013

Relax in solitude

Outside of the gymnasium on a base in an undisclosed location, the sun is beating down on the rocks, the wind is whipping by, and the roar of jet engines is heard in the distance. But walk inside that gymnasium, any Sunday or Thursday evening, and be greeted by the strains of soft instrumental music and a sea of silent military members, seated on

28 Mar 2013

Resiliency: A Panoramic View

On a solo backpacking trip, weeks prior to my current deployment, I unintentionally veered away from my planned route after a sudden storm swept across the canyon floor I was hiking through. Though it was a direct affront on my pride, I had to admit to myself that I was lost. As I fumbled between map, compass and pencil, and attempted to reorient

21 Jan 2013

Consider the Eraser

Have you ever thought about the purpose of an eraser? I can hear you say, "Wow! Deep, spiritual reflection today, eh Chap?" Seriously, why was the eraser invented? The obvious answer is to correct a mistake we have made while writing on paper. The eraser allows us to wipe away our mistake and start over. The same could be said of white-out or the

15 Nov 2012

CAF: Thanksgiving proclamations in American history

Thanksgiving proclamations have a long history in the United States. The Continental Congress in 1777, one year after our independence, gave the first Thanksgiving proclamation. These proclamations by the Continental Congress continued until 1784. George Washington then issued his first Thanksgiving proclamation in 1789 entreating the people to

9 Nov 2012

Job Swap: A day in the life of the Army

During the four years I've been in the Air Force, my job has been all about fighting fires. Recently, I was approached by my leadership and asked if I wanted to participate in an Army initiative called "A Day in the life of a Soldier." Along with three of my fellow firefighters, we volunteered to experience what they do. A day in the life program