Sunday, September 14, 2008

Visits to the Locals

I did not take these pictures, a couple folks I work with did on a visit to locals a couple weeks ago. One of the things you don't hear enough of back home is when soldiers go out and distribute food and toys for the kids. So here are some views of a "humanitarian patrol" into Injun country. We do this far more than you are hearing about via the media and sometimes these can be the most dangerous missions. The Taliban does not want the locals to view us as anything but the "evil infidels." Missions like this show the locals that we are indeed, friendly.


Toys and gifts break the ice. See? The Gringos aren't all that bad.



Showing off for the camera.




New construction rises above the existing mud houses.




The backyard.



Big sister isn't too shy.



The little ones aren't entirely certain, but they also aren't letting go of their new toys.



Who is this strange person?



Old granny in the middle is blind, daughter not far behind.



You frequently see henna-stained hands and feet on the women here.
They are showing the young female captain how it is done.
I emphasized female because men do not visit indoors with women who are not family.



Smiles all around.



10 comments:

Vodka Mom said...

wow. Those are amazing pictures. loved it.

Charles Gramlich said...

Lovely. So good to see the other side of things for a change.

Bernita said...

"One of the things you don't hear enough of back home is when soldiers go out and distribute food and toys for the kids."

That is so true.
School supplies as well.

preTzel said...

Of course they aren't going to share the "good" because that would mean that something is going right.

I hope all is well with you JL and I loved the pics. It's so nice to see that these children are being shown kindness and compassion in the light of evil (Taliban) that surrounds that country.

Keep up the good fight.

The Muse said...

More incredible images. Keep up the great job!

ssas said...

This proves women, especially moms, are the same the world over. We like to talk about our kids and beauty products.

Reb said...

Those are great photos. Thank you & your friend for sharing them. It is great to see another side to what is going on over there.

Barbara Martin said...

Very nice insight into how life is for the locals.

Ello - Ellen Oh said...

Great pictures! But what about the food?!! ;o)

I think this was wonderful. Who supplies the toys? Are they donations?

J. L. Krueger said...

Thanks all for stopping by. I was without Internet for a few days (good thing I had this post scheduled in advance) while traveling to the far side of Afghanistan.

Sorry Ell, no food this time! The toys are donated from folks at home. In some cases soldiers and contractors have family send boxes of stuff for the kids.

The next post will be about my "road trip" to Injun country.