“The Sandstorm” Reaction

Wow, Sean Huze’s book the “The Sandstorm” really took me back in times. This book at times, I had to set aside and “take a moment” for myself before continuing with my reading. I can remember just as if it was yesterday the times when I had to dawn my MOPP gear, sweating as if I was in a sauna, sipping on water through a small tube through the gas mask for hours on end until we got the “all clear” order from our “higher ups”. Only when this order was given we were finally able to take the gear off and left with a layer of black charcoal they used to line the inside of the suits.

So many memories came back to me, too many to list, too many for someone to understand, who hasn’t experienced the things soldiers have to endure. Even though some negative memories were brought back when reading “The Sandstorm” there were many great memories that came to mind. The times when people are thanking you for saving them, children laughing, smiling, and waving at you, friends you made, moments when you laughed. This might sound strange, but no matter how corny the situation was which made you laugh you will always remember the people around, what their laughter sounded like, their face, and the joy you felt no matter how small, overcomes the bad.

I believe every soldier who reads this book or even watches the play which is a brilliant play, can and will relate to all the characters in this story in some way or another. Every soldier has endured in some way the feelings and situations these characters express. Hatred, sorrow, revenge, remorse, is all things a soldier has to deal with at some point, but must just try to bury the memories away. Trying one day to forget what they have done and what they have seen, but for some strange reason you never really want to forget it and in the end never will. These feelings make you feel human and not so much as a monster, if you’re able to bury them away forever and not remember, this is when you lose your mind.

The Sandstorm just proves how soldiers are a special breed of people and how strong of a bond is built within the military personal and how that bond will always be there, even if you have never met the soldier you are family and will die for each other. Most people like hearing about war stories, but most just want to hear about the glory of war, not necessarily hear about the “truths” of war. This is why these stories are great, they don’t “sugar coat” true events, they are told by real soldiers with real experiences, who want the truth to be out, so people can truly understand how soldiers feel and how it affect their lives forever.

I’ve had the great opportunity to see this play a couple of years ago and would recommend this for anyone who has enjoyed reading this book. Also, if you liked this book you should also see the movie “Home of the Brave”, it shows how strong a soldier will has to be in order to cope with the civilian world once serving oversees’. One great site I like to go to thank fallen soldiers and their families for the ultimate sacrifice is http://www.legacy.com/Soldier/Home.aspx and this web site is great source to leave a fallen soldier’s family a thank you message. It’s not just the soldier who appreciates a “thank you” every once in a while, it means a lot to the families who have lost a special loved one.