There you are heat! We've been wondering about you

"I know I had no hand in making this war, and I know I will make more
sacrifices today than any of you to secure the peace." - William Tecumseh
Sherman

Perhaps the sacrifices we make aren't as measurable as those made in Sherman's day, but they are sacrifices nonetheless. Iraq is an unforgivingly hot place when the summer months draw near. Strangely though it's been reasonably pleasant since we arrived. Where is that notorious heat? One or two of my Soldiers on their first foray here have already asked, "Sir, where's that heat you kept telling us about?" I've been assuring them that it would be here soon enough. This year, thankfully, it has taken its sweet time in arriving. Well the first real taste is here. Temperatures in the past couple of days have pushed into the triple-digit range. Those temperatures are here to stay. Right now the daytime high is topping around 105 degrees. By the time July rolls around the normal high will be around 135. Most people back home think its a desert "dry" heat. They're wrong. Iraqi summers are extremely humid due to the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers with their various tributaries. But unlike the deep South, this is a humid heat that lingers without rain. It's just unforgiving heat. The heat is now back and it's getting a little hotter every day. Soon just the simple act of walking outside for a few minutes will be a sacrifice unto itself. Hang on to your bootstraps my Soldiers - it's just getting started.

One of the beautiful resiliencies of Soldiers is that they continue to work through every adversity. With that in mind, my CSM and I headed down to the burning heat of one of our truck company motorpools. Joined by the Company Commander and Company First Sergeant, we gave recognition to several Soldiers who had continued to work with incredible fortitude, setting the example for all their fellow Soldiers. I presented them with certificates of appreciation and Battalion coins. Then shared a few words with the gathered crowd of the company maintenance section. Working on giant trucks in blistering heat is no joke. Yet these Soldiers do so without complaint. Their fleet of line haulers and lowboys stay at operational ready rates of almost 100%. The beat goes on. Mission success is what fuels us all. Do your worst Iraqi heat. You won't stop us. You may make it miserable but you won't even dent our resolve.

But I must admit that the hot days remind me that I'm now up to 86 days without a cold Yuengling. That's another sacrifice. And it's a sacrifice Sherman's army didn't have to make. They didn't have General Order #1.