What were your first thoughts each time you went outside of the wire?

Will I make it back alive.

Arrived in Baghdad in early 2004. Landed at BIAP & then had to go to Steel Falcon in SE Baghdad. We formed a phalanx in the back of an open deuce & a half. No armor or specialized buses then. I don't think fear as overwhelming, more like curiosity & wonder. We got lots of smiles & thumbs up from locals. Our first night of patrolling a few days later let us see how brutal things can be for the locals. On our second night, we saw the IPs parked in a different spot & were wondering why & then we got hit with our first IED. We learned at that moment that the police were not our friends & those who came to our aid were the local civilians. We had good standing with the locals there after that. Not the IPs.

There were all kinds of thoughts that went through your mind but, we didn't talk about it. I didn't pull too many patrols. I Will admit, I was scared each time. And again, you really didn't have time to get scared. This was just before Tet Offensive. it was not just going outside the wire, it was the incoming that you were not so sure of. It could hit and find you anywhere. I remember this one LT that was killed in a bunker, he didn't have a mark on him but he was dead. Such a waste of your lives on both sides.