Part of my job as slave to Brad and Debbie was to video tape just about everything, so I could later make sort of 'promo-videos' for the Festaburg. In the interest of spreading the word, I thought I'd post them on here as they come. I finished the first one tonight! Yay. So, check it out!!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Saying Goodbye
Sunday, 11:15 pm
The silence is loud. We just closed the door as Brad took the final van-full of soldiers back to post, to pick up their bags and head to the Hall of Champions, the last place they will be on post, where they get their smallpox shot, check their id's and dogtags, and get on the bus. Fifteen months before they'll be back. And we pray to God that they will all be back.
I can't help crying as I think of this. This was the last weekend. Now it's just Brad and Debbie and the guys on Rear D. Even I'm leaving - but I'm going home. Back to the States. I will miss this place, but I have no complaints. I get to go home, back to familiar sights and voices and foods and hugs. But these guys - and girls - my friends - are going downrange. Some of them are already gone. The house has been filled, every single bed and several couches, for the last four weekends, and now it's empty. And in that reality, the silence is loud. You can hear every clock tick, every footstep. Every deep breath, and whispered prayer. Oh God, why them? Is there a reason for this? Will they come back?
My heart breaks for the women who have to stand outside the gym, wishing they could follow their husbands inside as they check out. I cry for the children who are too little to understand where Daddy is going, and for the ones who have already been without their mother or father, who've had to stay in the States and adjust early to living on phone calls and letters. Now the soldiers are off to the heat of battle, where they will serve and fight and sacrifice for the rest of us.
They've laughed and joked about it, but when you stand in the doorway and say those goobyes, you catch a glimpse of what's behind their strength. You walk by an open door and hear it in the choked words on a last phone call home for who knows how long. You see it as they all sit and listen to the same songs over and over. If You're Reading This, by Tim McGraw. Letters from Home, John Michael Montogmery. They know where they're going and what it is they're going to be facing. Some of them have been there before, some as many as 4 times. They're gone. It's been talked about for months, but until now, when I've seen them walk out the door for the last time. When I know that I won't get another chance for goodbye. When I know some of them are gone already. When I know that in a few hours, they'll be on a bus with their bags, headed for a plane to take them to Iraq. To war.
Please, pray for our soldiers. For my friends. For these heroes.
The silence is loud. We just closed the door as Brad took the final van-full of soldiers back to post, to pick up their bags and head to the Hall of Champions, the last place they will be on post, where they get their smallpox shot, check their id's and dogtags, and get on the bus. Fifteen months before they'll be back. And we pray to God that they will all be back.
I can't help crying as I think of this. This was the last weekend. Now it's just Brad and Debbie and the guys on Rear D. Even I'm leaving - but I'm going home. Back to the States. I will miss this place, but I have no complaints. I get to go home, back to familiar sights and voices and foods and hugs. But these guys - and girls - my friends - are going downrange. Some of them are already gone. The house has been filled, every single bed and several couches, for the last four weekends, and now it's empty. And in that reality, the silence is loud. You can hear every clock tick, every footstep. Every deep breath, and whispered prayer. Oh God, why them? Is there a reason for this? Will they come back?
My heart breaks for the women who have to stand outside the gym, wishing they could follow their husbands inside as they check out. I cry for the children who are too little to understand where Daddy is going, and for the ones who have already been without their mother or father, who've had to stay in the States and adjust early to living on phone calls and letters. Now the soldiers are off to the heat of battle, where they will serve and fight and sacrifice for the rest of us.
They've laughed and joked about it, but when you stand in the doorway and say those goobyes, you catch a glimpse of what's behind their strength. You walk by an open door and hear it in the choked words on a last phone call home for who knows how long. You see it as they all sit and listen to the same songs over and over. If You're Reading This, by Tim McGraw. Letters from Home, John Michael Montogmery. They know where they're going and what it is they're going to be facing. Some of them have been there before, some as many as 4 times. They're gone. It's been talked about for months, but until now, when I've seen them walk out the door for the last time. When I know that I won't get another chance for goodbye. When I know some of them are gone already. When I know that in a few hours, they'll be on a bus with their bags, headed for a plane to take them to Iraq. To war.
Please, pray for our soldiers. For my friends. For these heroes.
Monday, April 7, 2008
The Last Day
It seems unreal that this is my last day in Germany.
It began about 12:05 am, as I was sitting on the couch watching movies, when Mac opened the door and told me to go put on my shoes so we could play in the snow. He wanted to make a snowman, cause he'd never done that before, and we built a big one! We rolled giant snowballs up and down the silent street until about 1:30 in the morning, and we built Christoph (that's his name) right outside the front door. We had fun dressing him up in Mac's beret and fleece, with a knife for a mouth and a plug converter nose. He even had bushy eyebrows! Brad certainly was startled when he went to step out this morning. :)
I spent the morning packing all my stuff back up. Despite having gotten rid of as much as I could - including multiple pairs of shoes - my bags appear to still be overweight. All that German chocolate!! But I got it all in, which is good. We went out for Döner as my last German meal, and we had Spaghetti-Eis to top it off. Came back, and I talked to mom about details and whatnot. Tomorrow morning we'll leave at 7 am, and I'll be in Phoenix at 8:30 pm!!!!!!!! I get to sleep in MY OWN BED tomorrow night!! AHhhhhh this is unreal! But so, so, so incredibly exciting!
I am going to miss it. It's going to be a weather shock coming from snow to 80 degree sunshine. I'm going to miss how beautiful the German countryside is. I'm going to miss Brad and Debbie, and I'm really going to miss Mac, and I already miss so many others. I'm going to miss speaking German - or a mix of "Denglisch." But I cannot wait to see my parents and hug my sister and see the SUN and pet my kittens and eat real mexican food and hug my friends and go to my church and did I mention enjoy the sunshine? I am ready to be home!!!! OH, it's so exciting!! Thinking about it is giving me tingles. :) hee hee hee hee the year is over!!! Can you believe it?? there were times when it went by soooo slowly, but now that I'm going home it seems to have sped by. Although, while it seems I haven't been in Germany that long, it seems like I haven't been home in forever. EEEEEEEEE I cannot WAIT!!! I hope I sleep on the plane, that always makes time go faster.
I'm coming home TOMORROW!!!
It began about 12:05 am, as I was sitting on the couch watching movies, when Mac opened the door and told me to go put on my shoes so we could play in the snow. He wanted to make a snowman, cause he'd never done that before, and we built a big one! We rolled giant snowballs up and down the silent street until about 1:30 in the morning, and we built Christoph (that's his name) right outside the front door. We had fun dressing him up in Mac's beret and fleece, with a knife for a mouth and a plug converter nose. He even had bushy eyebrows! Brad certainly was startled when he went to step out this morning. :)I spent the morning packing all my stuff back up. Despite having gotten rid of as much as I could - including multiple pairs of shoes - my bags appear to still be overweight. All that German chocolate!! But I got it all in, which is good. We went out for Döner as my last German meal, and we had Spaghetti-Eis to top it off. Came back, and I talked to mom about details and whatnot. Tomorrow morning we'll leave at 7 am, and I'll be in Phoenix at 8:30 pm!!!!!!!! I get to sleep in MY OWN BED tomorrow night!! AHhhhhh this is unreal! But so, so, so incredibly exciting!
I am going to miss it. It's going to be a weather shock coming from snow to 80 degree sunshine. I'm going to miss how beautiful the German countryside is. I'm going to miss Brad and Debbie, and I'm really going to miss Mac, and I already miss so many others. I'm going to miss speaking German - or a mix of "Denglisch." But I cannot wait to see my parents and hug my sister and see the SUN and pet my kittens and eat real mexican food and hug my friends and go to my church and did I mention enjoy the sunshine? I am ready to be home!!!! OH, it's so exciting!! Thinking about it is giving me tingles. :) hee hee hee hee the year is over!!! Can you believe it?? there were times when it went by soooo slowly, but now that I'm going home it seems to have sped by. Although, while it seems I haven't been in Germany that long, it seems like I haven't been home in forever. EEEEEEEEE I cannot WAIT!!! I hope I sleep on the plane, that always makes time go faster.
I'm coming home TOMORROW!!!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
One Week!
That's right - this time next week, I will be HOME! What an incredible thought - it's still hard to believe, because it seems that this world right here is the only one that exists, and that home is something I've dreamed of for so long that it couldn't possibly be real.
Brad and Debbie and I went to the pre-deployment ceremony this week. Not all of the soldiers were there, but there were quite a few. It was a good ceremony, but sad at the same time. Then Friday started what would probably be one of the last weekends. :( I got to babysit five adorable children Friday night, ages 6, 5, 3, and two just around a year old, one walking and one not. Fun stuff.
Saturday we took a trip to Trier and then to Rammstein Air Force Base. This was my third time in Trier, but it was a first for a bunch of the guys. We saw Constantine's Basilica, the Dom, and went up in the Porta Nigra, an old Roman gate. After spending most of the day there, we drove over to Rammstein to eat at Chili's (a real American restaurant in Germany!) and to go to the PowerZone, which is slightly larger at Rammstein than in Baumholder. Rammstein, being an Air Force Base, is in almost every way superior to the post in Baumholder. Mac, being prior service in the Air Force, left no opportunity un-seized to remind us of this fact. The sad thing is, it is quite true.
Sunday was church. I managed to fall down the stairs, and my left leg is now bruised from my knee down to my ankle. Ouch. The service was combined with the traditional and gospel services, and the Chaplain was . . . quite unlike anything I've ever heard. I was only able to understand about half of what was said, as it was delivered at such a volume that individual words were no longer discernible. After lunch it was back to the Festaburg for lunch, movies (or naps), and games.
Monday was a nice lazy morning, since about half the folks left to go work out. The rest of us just lazed about, enjoying the sunshine and the chance to do not much of anything. That afternoon we took a walk up to the castle with a large group. We brought a hymnal this time, so that we could enjoy singing a bunch of songs and actually know all the words. We sang for quite a long time, and it was really very cool. We hiked back and had dinner, and then played Catchphrase until it was time to take the soldier's back to post, which is always a sad time. Right now, you never know which hug you give out will be your last one before they're gone.Monday, March 24, 2008
Easter Weekend
And what a weekend it was!! Busy days, and it was a four-day weekend for most of the guys, so it's been crowded. People came over Thursday night after getting off work, and the house was pretty much full from then on, to the point that we used every single available bed, which has never happened before.
Friday was hole-digging day. Brad had decided that Sunday was going to have baptisms for some of the soldiers, and it was going to be a field baptism. That means, we went out and dug a hole in his back yard big enough to dunk people in. During the digging process (and by we I mean Mac and Will, with myself as supervisor, photographer, and coffee-fetcher. When I offered to be on digging detail, I was told that I could go play with my little sandcastle set. Brad has his picture here digging, but he only turned up the tip of
a shovel-full for the sake of a photograph), it snowed, and hailed, and sleeted, and the sun shone. O spring weather in Germany, how strange thou art. In German there's a saying, "April, April, er weiss nicht was er will," (April, April, he doesn't know what he wants) and it's sooo true. The weather is crazy!! Anyways, as they started, the guys were like, "It's been raining so much the ground is nice and wet, this should be no problem, as long as there aren't really many rocks." A few shovel-fulls later, they discovered the boulders. We were out there for 4 hours before it was finished. I got sick. :(
Saturday was Easter-preparation day, but included a hike to the castle. Much of the day was spent cleaning and cooking and getting ready for the next day's invasion. I made a potato salad, the recipe of which I must remember to brink home with me. Mmmm-mmmm. Yummy! One of the hams was cooked, and a bunch of other stuff prepared. We did take a nice hike up to Brad's castle, and I got to sing. Gordon even sang with me, which always makes things more fun. There were snowball fights on the way, and another once we actually got to the castle. Jonathan and I ran and locked ourselves (literally) into the castle to get away from the onslaught. Mac had to use his 'key' and free us again. That night we watched Ben-Hur, and I managed to stay awake for the whole movie!
Today was re-clean-up day, with a thorough scrubbing of the house from top to bottom, helpful since there were still 12 of us. All the beds full, plus people sleeping on couches! Incredible. After clean-up and some down time, some of us took another hike to the castle. Then came dinner, and the soldiers were back off to post. Most of them have four-day weekends coming up again, and I'm looking forward to seeing them all again soon. The house seems so empty once they're gone, especially after such a full weekend as this one was!
Sorry for the long read, folks, it was a long, fun, and busy weekend! And I'll be home in 2 weeks!!!
Friday was hole-digging day. Brad had decided that Sunday was going to have baptisms for some of the soldiers, and it was going to be a field baptism. That means, we went out and dug a hole in his back yard big enough to dunk people in. During the digging process (and by we I mean Mac and Will, with myself as supervisor, photographer, and coffee-fetcher. When I offered to be on digging detail, I was told that I could go play with my little sandcastle set. Brad has his picture here digging, but he only turned up the tip of
a shovel-full for the sake of a photograph), it snowed, and hailed, and sleeted, and the sun shone. O spring weather in Germany, how strange thou art. In German there's a saying, "April, April, er weiss nicht was er will," (April, April, he doesn't know what he wants) and it's sooo true. The weather is crazy!! Anyways, as they started, the guys were like, "It's been raining so much the ground is nice and wet, this should be no problem, as long as there aren't really many rocks." A few shovel-fulls later, they discovered the boulders. We were out there for 4 hours before it was finished. I got sick. :(
Saturday was Easter-preparation day, but included a hike to the castle. Much of the day was spent cleaning and cooking and getting ready for the next day's invasion. I made a potato salad, the recipe of which I must remember to brink home with me. Mmmm-mmmm. Yummy! One of the hams was cooked, and a bunch of other stuff prepared. We did take a nice hike up to Brad's castle, and I got to sing. Gordon even sang with me, which always makes things more fun. There were snowball fights on the way, and another once we actually got to the castle. Jonathan and I ran and locked ourselves (literally) into the castle to get away from the onslaught. Mac had to use his 'key' and free us again. That night we watched Ben-Hur, and I managed to stay awake for the whole movie!Sunday morning, snow had fallen, but I was determined to still where my little Easter dress, and 
I did. People looked at me like I was crazy, but that's okay. I was determined. The service was good, and when we came home there was a mild frenzy of getting ready, and then sort of a calm before the storm spent playing Left Right Center and the piano. There were over 50 people for our Easter meal. Tables and chairs upstairs and down, tons of food (about 40 lbs of ham and a turkey and tons of potatoes and deviled eggs and so much more), people on couches and oustide and everywhere. After lunch, we sang some songs and then went outside for our field baptism. 
We'd filled the hole up with hot water from the downstairs shower so that the poor soldiers wouldn't freeze to death, and the sun had come out and melted the remains of the snow. Five soldiers were baptized, and wrapped warmly in towels as soon as they got out. Next came an Easter Egg Hunt for the little kids (of which there were many!) and I got to be Chief Easter Egg Hider (woo-hoo!). Once that was over people started trickling home, and when they'd left, there were still almost 20 people staying here. Having 50+ people over makes a house a mess, so we set to work doing a basic cleaning before watching our movie and then saying our goodnights.
I did. People looked at me like I was crazy, but that's okay. I was determined. The service was good, and when we came home there was a mild frenzy of getting ready, and then sort of a calm before the storm spent playing Left Right Center and the piano. There were over 50 people for our Easter meal. Tables and chairs upstairs and down, tons of food (about 40 lbs of ham and a turkey and tons of potatoes and deviled eggs and so much more), people on couches and oustide and everywhere. After lunch, we sang some songs and then went outside for our field baptism. 
We'd filled the hole up with hot water from the downstairs shower so that the poor soldiers wouldn't freeze to death, and the sun had come out and melted the remains of the snow. Five soldiers were baptized, and wrapped warmly in towels as soon as they got out. Next came an Easter Egg Hunt for the little kids (of which there were many!) and I got to be Chief Easter Egg Hider (woo-hoo!). Once that was over people started trickling home, and when they'd left, there were still almost 20 people staying here. Having 50+ people over makes a house a mess, so we set to work doing a basic cleaning before watching our movie and then saying our goodnights.
Today was re-clean-up day, with a thorough scrubbing of the house from top to bottom, helpful since there were still 12 of us. All the beds full, plus people sleeping on couches! Incredible. After clean-up and some down time, some of us took another hike to the castle. Then came dinner, and the soldiers were back off to post. Most of them have four-day weekends coming up again, and I'm looking forward to seeing them all again soon. The house seems so empty once they're gone, especially after such a full weekend as this one was!Sorry for the long read, folks, it was a long, fun, and busy weekend! And I'll be home in 2 weeks!!!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
La Ligne Maginot
or, The Maginot Line: a rather brilliant military installation designed by the French to prevent Germany from invading during World War II. It was basically a line of fortifications stretching from northern France all the way south to Nice along the German border, able to defend against any German onslaught. Unfortunately, Hitler decided to invade Belgium and enter France from the other side, rendering the whole ineffective, since the guns couldn't turn around the other way. Oops.That's where we went yesterday. We went to Ouverage
Simserhof, the fourth largest 'block' of the Maginot Line. Friday night we were sitting around discussing our options for Saturday's activity when Gordon suggested France, and a trip to the Maginot Line. Sounds interesting, only an hour and a half away - okay, let's go! So we did - and it was fascinating. I had never heard of it before, so it was a lot of fun to sit in between Brad and Gordon on the way there and learn all about it. We watched a movie about it in English, then took a tour on a train, with audio and video in alternating English and German. After that was over, we took a walking tour throughout the entire block with our German guide. (I got to be the translator - and I don't think I did too badly!) It was really very cool - much cooler than I thought it would be.
After the three hour tour, we drove another 10 kilometers to another block, one that hadn't been turned into a museum, where we could climb up top and see the raise-able (I know there's a better word in English, but it escapes me at the moment) gun towers. It was a lot of fun, and we had a full van. Poor Happy actually had to stay behind because there weren't enough seats. Debbie and Nellie were away on the PWOC retreat, so I was the only girl, which was pretty fun. :)The rest of the week has been great, too. Wednesday night we had a
record number of soldiers at the house, and Friday night was very large, as well. Mac had a four day weekend so he was here helping me clean and cook on Friday after Debbie left. Saturday was our French adventure and movie night, Sunday was church and a nice big lunch, followed by an afternoon of Catchphrase and other games. I played more chess this weekend than I have in the last 10 months, which was fun, even though I lost most of the games. And today, I laughed more with Mac and Nellie than I have laughed in a very, very long time, to the point where breathing was painful (or impossible) and smiling hurt. It was great.And now I can say I've been to France!
Monday, March 10, 2008
Week One
Well, my goodness, I can hardly believe the first week is already over. Time flies when you're having fun! And what a week it has been. Have I mentioned I love this place?
So, Tuesday morning I went with Debbie to the PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) Bible Study on post. It had been snowing a little bit when we woke up, and by the time we got to the chapel, there was enough snow sticking to the ground that we could leave footprints. I was excited! Well, 3 hours later, it still hadn't stopped snowing. We got almost 8 inches of snow!! It was so beautiful! We did get stuck on post for a while until the roads got cleared and we could go back to the House, and it was just so cool to see everything covered in so much snow. I finally got my big snow for living in Germany! Wheee!!! Of course, I had to go make a snowman, down on Brad and Debbie's volleyball court, and they even gave me a carrot for his nose. :) 
Wednesday night is always a dinner & discussion night, and there were quite a few single soldiers there. We filled the entire upstairs living room. It was fun to meet a lot more of the soldiers, and to see some familiar faces again.
Thursday was a good day, Brad left to go pick up the speaker for the PMOC (Protestant Men of the Chapel) conference that was this weekend, so Debbie and I had a nice, laid-back day, concluded with popcorn and movies.
Friday is Bible Study day, so we clean and cook during the day, and people come over for dinner. It was a smaller group, since most of the guys were at the PMOC retreat. One of the soldiers led a Bible study, and then everyone went home except our weekend group.
This weekend, the group was Debbie, me, Nellie, and Mac. Now, Nellie and Mac are regulars, to the point that they have rooms named after them. The 2-bed bunk room (where I'm living) is "Nellie's Room," and the bedroom is "Mac's Room." (and the other bunkroom is "Rob's Room.") What a great group - we had a blast. Saturday was spent shopping, all over in Idar-Oberstein and on post in Baumholder. Saturday night was movies and ice cream sundaes!
Sunday morning we had chapel, and then it was back to the House for grilled cheese sandwiches - and yummy tomatoe sandwiches! Lazy afternoon playing dice and catching up on e-mail and stuff, and watching Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, which is very good. We also all got new nicknames this weekend. In Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, they have an accountant, and they call him Mutant. (you have to see the movie!) Anyways, it's hilarious, and at the end I said I needed someone to call Mutant - and Mac volunteered, so he's officially Mutant. Nellie is Trolli, or gummyworm, because she managed to win an electric blue Trolli hat at the German store. Then they decided I was Princess, or Buttercup, after we watched the Princess Bride - which of course makes Rob the Dread Pirate Roberts. It's random, but a lot of fun. We went back to post in the evening so Debbie could go to Bible study, and we three ate at Taco Bell (!!) and then picked Rob up at his barracks, since he was back from PMOC, and we went to the bowling alley on post. Just really a great week!
So, Tuesday morning I went with Debbie to the PWOC (Protestant Women of the Chapel) Bible Study on post. It had been snowing a little bit when we woke up, and by the time we got to the chapel, there was enough snow sticking to the ground that we could leave footprints. I was excited! Well, 3 hours later, it still hadn't stopped snowing. We got almost 8 inches of snow!! It was so beautiful! We did get stuck on post for a while until the roads got cleared and we could go back to the House, and it was just so cool to see everything covered in so much snow. I finally got my big snow for living in Germany! Wheee!!! Of course, I had to go make a snowman, down on Brad and Debbie's volleyball court, and they even gave me a carrot for his nose. :) Wednesday night is always a dinner & discussion night, and there were quite a few single soldiers there. We filled the entire upstairs living room. It was fun to meet a lot more of the soldiers, and to see some familiar faces again.
Thursday was a good day, Brad left to go pick up the speaker for the PMOC (Protestant Men of the Chapel) conference that was this weekend, so Debbie and I had a nice, laid-back day, concluded with popcorn and movies.
Friday is Bible Study day, so we clean and cook during the day, and people come over for dinner. It was a smaller group, since most of the guys were at the PMOC retreat. One of the soldiers led a Bible study, and then everyone went home except our weekend group.
This weekend, the group was Debbie, me, Nellie, and Mac. Now, Nellie and Mac are regulars, to the point that they have rooms named after them. The 2-bed bunk room (where I'm living) is "Nellie's Room," and the bedroom is "Mac's Room." (and the other bunkroom is "Rob's Room.") What a great group - we had a blast. Saturday was spent shopping, all over in Idar-Oberstein and on post in Baumholder. Saturday night was movies and ice cream sundaes!
Sunday morning we had chapel, and then it was back to the House for grilled cheese sandwiches - and yummy tomatoe sandwiches! Lazy afternoon playing dice and catching up on e-mail and stuff, and watching Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, which is very good. We also all got new nicknames this weekend. In Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, they have an accountant, and they call him Mutant. (you have to see the movie!) Anyways, it's hilarious, and at the end I said I needed someone to call Mutant - and Mac volunteered, so he's officially Mutant. Nellie is Trolli, or gummyworm, because she managed to win an electric blue Trolli hat at the German store. Then they decided I was Princess, or Buttercup, after we watched the Princess Bride - which of course makes Rob the Dread Pirate Roberts. It's random, but a lot of fun. We went back to post in the evening so Debbie could go to Bible study, and we three ate at Taco Bell (!!) and then picked Rob up at his barracks, since he was back from PMOC, and we went to the bowling alley on post. Just really a great week!
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