From a Marine's Side of the Camera

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When Finbarr O’Reilly, a Reuters photographer, embedded with my squad of Marines in Afghanistan last October, I strategically positioned myself between him and my men, to keep them out of trouble. I based my decision on experience and preconceived notions regarding combat journalists. On the first night, I questioned him for hours about his upbringing, his background and his political outlook on the war, to get a better feel for who he was. It appeared that he wasn't a bad guy after all. We shared a lot of views. But I remained cautious. You can never judge a book by its cover.Less than a day after meeting each other, we were being pinned down in an alleyway together in Nabu Agha. Within 24 hours, I’d gone from not wanting my men anywhere near Finbarr <a href="http://www.the-tods.com"><strong>Tod's Chaussures </strong></a> to finding myself huddled within inches of him. He maintained a constant professionalism and a level head. And he managed to produce breathtaking photographs. Combat has a way of bringing together strangers and forging a bond like no other. I do not envy the feeling of being trapped in a war zone without a weapon. If it’s a feeling of helplessness, though, Finbarr never <a href="http://www.the-tods.com"><strong>Moncler Bas </strong></a> once showed it.Finbarr was on patrol with my squad the day I was injured. I don't remember much. His pictures helped bring back some memories; not of his being a photographer but of his being my friend, giving me water and his sunglasses, helping me walk to a safer area, comforting me and telling me that my men were O.K. After I was evacuated, he took the time to catch up with me and make sure I was all right. He got in touch with my wife and daughter to comfort and reassure them. This certainly goes above and beyond what you’d expect an embedded photojournalist to do.After a short visit back to the United States, Finbarr returned to my unit in February, stepping off the truck at our position with a sack full of cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, magazines and Starbucks coffee — all the essentials to start the day in Afghanistan. While he was gone, I realized I missed our conversations. On his second tour, I found myself learning from Finbarr and truly being inspired. I watched him on every patrol. I watched him as he photographed us around our base. Finbarr was in the foreground, and I was putting him in focus. Our bond grew stronger. He was working on a project called "Looking Through Afghanistan's Closed Doors"; literally pictures of doorways that leave the viewer to imagine the lives behind them. To see the passion on his face and in his <a href="http://www.the-tods.com"><strong>Puma pas cher </strong></a> eyes, to see the drive in the way he moved; it made me want to find that in my life. It made me aspire to find a better purpose. It made me long to find my perfect door.We Marines are often forced into grim situations with less-than-fortunate outcomes. Civilians seldom relate to or understand the horrors we see and how they affect our lives. I shared many late-night conversations with Finbarr over our campfire on Outpost Kunjak. We found that we shared two lives that are surreal to most other people. We mesh because we are so different, yet in so many ways alike, because we are not the status quo. We aren't normal 9-to-5rs. Our 9 a.m. would start at 0600 hours and when our 5 p.m. would come, at 2100, we would tell stories of home or debate current events. Whether we shared the same ideals at that moment didn't matter. The conversation was simply an escape from the harrowing reality we were in; a reality that few people share, a reality that brought Finbarr and me together.It is a further reality that few people are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for another person. Even fewer would make the sacrifice simply to tell another person’s story. Through his photos and articles, Finbarr O'Reilly told my story and the stories of my Marines. By doing so, he helped me find my door. For this, I will forever be grateful.Sadly, <a href="http://skaoru.web.infoseek.co.jp/cgi-bin/honey.cgi"><strong>women's,MBT sport function ######ual design in the, suction ...</strong></a> it may take years of trying for our schedules to match up, but eventually I'll be able to tell him in person. Not over coffee, though. This time, I’m buying him a beer.Sgt. Thomas James Brennan led the Third Platoon, Fourth Squad of the First Battalion, Eighth Marines, in Helmand Province. Now 26, and still on active duty, he is stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.