They know the war is never-ending [View All]

This one is maimed for life.


...

His son comes out of the bedroom, leaning on his walker, fumbling with bandages. Asked about the war and how the Marines view the fighting to come, he says, "It's going to be OIF 17."

OIF? "Operation Iraqi Freedom," the former basketball player says. "There was OIF-1, then Operation Enduring Freedom. There'll be OIF 17. Our kids, our kids' kids, are going to be fighting in this. That's what we all think."

He lowers himself to the floor. His leg is wrapped in an erector set. His sister sits in her purple nightgown on the couch. There's a $12 Christmas tree in the corner, but I search in vain for the angels hanging, calm and bright, over the open wounds.


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