a day in the life of an iraqi soldier

In high school, my badminton coach was in the army reserve. During my sophomore year he was called to fight in the Iraqi war. This blog is based on what he told us when he came back my senior year...
A soldier fighting in the Iraqi war has a very difficult life. Each day is different, with new challenges to face. Some days are easier than others, but most days are long and hard. The day starts at about 7am and goes until noon. It then starts up again around 6pm and goes until midnight. These hours are spent fighting for his/her country. The conditions are never really good no matter where the war is. It can be anywhere from the negative numbers to the triple digits. But no matter the weather, the soldier must always be willing to fight. No matter where a soldier is, he is always in danger. The ground is scattered with mines that blow up with the slightest of pressure. many jeeps have been completely desroyed, along with the people within them, after driving over mines. My badminton coach had this happen to him wheret he jeep directly behind the jeep he was in exploded after driving over a mine. Being that many of the Iraqi people do not want the soldiers on their land, they treat the soldiers poorly and do not appreciate what the soldiers are there to do. In Iraq the soldiers have to be ready for anything. Even a child can have an explosive device strapped onto them. From sunrise to sunset, a soldier must be on his toes and ready for anything.
Seeing people die all around you is hard for a soldier, no matter how strong they are. It is especially hard when close friends of theirs are killed right infront of their eyes. Also difficult is the fact that their family is at home. Many soldiers even have spouses and children whom are depending on them to come home.
When my badminton coach did come home my senior year, he was a different person. He still had his sense of humor, but what he lacked was his compassion. Everything dealt with the army in his mind. He even structured our badminton workouts after his army workouts. It really showed me just how much being in the army can change your life. It really takes a special kind of person to endure what a person in the army goes through. It takes not only physical strength, but also emotional.
Their days are long, and not always rewarding. Most days are depressing knowing that the end of the war is a complete mystery. But a soldier is able to endure all of this because he so greatly loves the country in which he lives in and will do anything, including sacrifice his life, to protect it.