The War in Iraq Just Got a Little Closer to Home
By: Jason Webb
Some days the war is a lot closer to home than you realize.
My daughter didn’t want “just another sweet 16” birthday party. Three months ago she convinced me she should rent the local Community Plaza and I should fork out $300 dollars for a DJ, so the friends could have a “real dance and karaoke party” instead of a “lame” cake and ice cream affair.
Two days before the party, we got a phone call from; the Plaza, the Chamber of Commerce, and the City Council. They “had serious concerns over security” after seeing flyers throughout town and had decided to cancel our rental. After a hastily scheduled meeting the morning before the party they renegotiated the terms of rental. Instead of eight chaperones and one off-duty officer, they now wanted ten chaperones, two cops, a hundred thousand dollar liability insurance policy, along with a two thousand dollar security deposit.
We were a bit stressed, to say the least, since we only had until 1p.m. to meet the additional requirements. Calling through our list of chaperones for additional help, someone tossed out the name Amber Renslow. Her husband was gone to Iraq and she could help out. By 12:30 that afternoon we had everything settled and the party was a go.
Saturday I met Amber for the first time ten minutes before the party started. She was very young, had a little boy at Grandma’s house for the evening, and was glad to get out of the house for a few hours. Her husband Justin was in Iraq and she worried constantly about him so she was glad for the distraction/dance.
We spent probably 20 minutes talking about the war, her husband, and her fears. I told her she had more support than she realized, many didn’t agree with the war but all support our troops and her 100 percent. I chided her, she had better treat him right and be there when he got home. She knew what I was talking about, “Oh my god, no. I’m keeping him around for a long time. Isn’t it terrible when they get Dear John letters when they are gone. It’s happened to three guys in Justin’s unit already. I’d never do anything like that to him ever. I just want him home and as soon as possible. I miss him terribly.”
The dance ended at midnight Saturday July 15th but we didn’t get cleaned up and out of the Plaza until 1:30a.m. Sunday morning. Sunday morning I woke up very tired and glad it was over. Amber woke up with the phone ringing at 5:a.m. It was an Army lieutenant calling to report that Sgt. Justin Abernathy had been involved in an IED explosion. His arm was hit with shrapnel pulverizing the bones in a compound fracture. He had other injuries also because the 2 ½ ton truck he was riding in with two other men had burned. He was alive but needed to be evacuated to Germany for surgery.
Justin was conscious and Amber was able to talk with him for a few moments before being loaded on an air ambulance. When the lieutenant came back on the line he said he would be calling Amber back that day with instructions for how she and her son would be flown to Germany to meet Justin out of surgery.
I woke up yesterday glad the stress was over for me. Today I appreciate I wasn’t stressed at all. I just had a minor inconvenience. I have no idea the amount of fear, pain and stress Amber is going through. It is terrible Americans are dying and being wounded daily in Iraq but I’m from Oelwein (population: hamlet in the middle of nowhere Iowa). How bad are things going to get before the boys can come home? The war just got a little closer to home for me and its too close for comfort.
Jason Webb is a student of life living in rural Iowa.