andrew+choe

=Phil= I never thought that I would see my mom, Ana, again. After fighting in Afghanistan for about one year, you have to see the family. I had enough of the horror of stealing, murdering, and corruption among the citizens of the Middle East area. When I came back home to Cleveland, nobody thanked me for my service. I felt like I was a stranger to my own country.

When I came to the garden, it was alive with people and plants. Everybody was working as one, it felt like a well oiled machine. I feel that the person I really connected with was Sam. He said that fighting in Iraq was a brave thing to do. Actually he was the first person to thank me for my service. Children went up to me and asked questions. I felt like everybody appreciated me. When my mom, Ana, asked me which plant I was going to plant. I had to think, which one. Then finally I chose the apple tree. My father always loved apples. His favorite saying is an apple a day keeps the doctor away. But that was before he got killed in World War II. I planned to set a plaque on the tree to remember my dad.

It seemed that everybody had a hard time watering their plants so one day I went to the store to buy watering cans. When I came to the garden with watering cans, everybody exploded with excitement. Even though there was only ten watering cans, everybody took their own turn with them. At the end of the day, everybody thanked me for the watering cans. Everyday, I checked on the tree, watered it, and made sure that everything was alright. I didn't want anybody to touch or harm it. I guess you could say I was like their father and the child was my apple tree. Everything seemed alright when one day I got a letter from the mail it read......

Dear Lt. Phil Anderson, You are to report to Afghanistan immediately. The US marines need your help in conquering section 4 of quadrant 5. We need your help because your replacement has been killed by a fragment grenade. Please go to the Cleveland airport for a direct flight to Iraq. Once you are there, you will be in enemy territory. You will need to try to learn as much as you can about artillery, troops, and weapons. We trust that you accept this mission with a humble feeling. PLEASE KNOW THAT YOU WILL BE ENGAGING HOSTILES. You leave at 1200 sharp. We expect you to be there, Lieutenant.

U.S. MARINE CORPS.

I didn't want to go but I had to. As soon as I told the news to my mother, she broke down in tears. The next day, I announced the bad news to everyone and there were shocked. I bet you $50 that everyone said that he/she felt sorry for me. Last night, I prepared my will. Preparing a will is mandatory for a soldier who is about to go into battle. Usually, before I go into the "Battle-Zone", I dream of my dad fighting in WWII.

Today is the big day. As soon as I get to the airport, everybody from the garden cheers me on until I arrived at the gate. So I felt embarrassed about how the security had to come to stop them. It wasn't a big plane, maybe big enough for about 10 people. It was just me and the pilot. Here we go I thought as we ascended into the sky.