Small Wars Journal

Passing the Baby

Fri, 08/20/2021 - 2:23pm

PASSING THE BABY

By Keith Nightingale


No image better depicts what our Nation and our Uniforms means to others than this photo.

 
 An Afghan mother, in desperation, passes her baby to a US Uniform.


She may never see her child again, but she knows that child, will have a far better life than the one she knows and from what her mother saved her from.


She knows this because the Uniforms she saw were entirely honorable and displayed the best of our humanity.


Their performance stirred her innermost core of Motherhood when survival became the dominate issue.


All the genetic protective mechanisms that drive motherhood made this wrenching decision.


It is this image that shows the incredible value our Uniforms have in representing what we are all about.


If any Uniform, past or present, that served in Afghanistan, wonders if it was worth it,


This photo answers the question.

 

Baby Photo

 

About the Author(s)

COL Nightingale is a retired Army Colonel who served two tours in Vietnam with Airborne and Ranger (American and Vietnamese) units. He commanded airborne battalions in both the 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment and the 82nd Airborne Division. He later commanded both the 1/75th Rangers and the 1st Ranger Training Brigade.

Comments

AllenWalter

Wed, 09/22/2021 - 4:37am

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