Today I read an article about my brother's unit in Afghanistan.
It has always been interesting to me that my brother and I are both involved in service. It seems only appropriate with our upbringing.
Our parents had us involved in service before we could even walk. One of my favorite pictures of my mom is her gardening city parks with my infant brother on her back.
My brother has told me he doesn't understand why I am volunteering, he thinks with my previous job experience I should have easily found a job and started a career, or something like that. But it's not about volunteering to get experience or find a future path, it is about learning how to give back. I have been so lucky in my life and not every one is that lucky.
My brother is giving back by helping a war torn nation get back on it's feet. He is in a Military Police (MP) unit that is helping to train the the Afghan National Police, who are the weakest part of the country's security forces. A goal in this war is to strengthening them, which will allow the U.S. to follow through with its plans to withdraw from the country.
My brother and I are very different people and it seems that we see the word in two different ways, but when it comes down to it we are very similar. We are both serving those who cannot serve themselves and we are volunteers who are making sacrifices to help others. My brother is by far a greater volunteer than I will ever be, I will never have people shooting at me during my work day and I do not need to worry about my fellow volunteers being injured. But we are both living in areas outside our comfort zone, we are both living with people we don't know, we are both helping, and we both volunteered for this life.
I am so proud of my brother and everything he is doing for this country and for the people of Afghanistan. He only has a few months left before he'll be home. I hope he is able to see the good he has brought to the people he has served, because it can be difficult, but each day he has been making a difference.
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