Sand And Hope: My Journey In Iraq 2007-2009

Sand and Hope: A True Story from the Iraq War (2007–2009)

I arrived in Baghdad the week of Christmas—helmet under my arm, heart in my throat—and walked into the

glowing halls of Al Faw Palace inside the Green Zone. That first night, staring at palace lights

reflecting off the water, I felt both the distance from home and the weight of the mission ahead.

I wasn't a soldier. I was a civilian on a Provincial Reconstruction Team, based near Tikrit at FOB/Camp

Speicher, working shoulder-to-shoulde...