Talk about going out with a bang! ( Archived) (17)

So, I'm sitting here, minding my own business and enjoying the History Channel. As of tonight, I have 3 days left until I will leave Afghanistan and head back to Greece. All of a sudden......Whhhhooooommmppphh. The second time since I've been here when a rocket was fired in our direction. So, the Duck and Cover tone started wailing on the loudspeakers and kept on for close to an hour.
All is fine now (the Marine guards have given us the all clear) and apparently the rocket didn't get too close, even though I could hear it when it hit. Can't wait to get on the plane on Tuesday!
Surprisingly, such events tend to be more of a nuisance than anything else, which is the part that I find most alarming to me. It doesn't happen very often here (close to me, I mean), but I find myself saying "Oh, crap..here we go again" and getting annoyed by the wailing alarm more than I really fear for my safety. So I ask myself tonight if I am just denying my own mortality. Just thinking out loud here, but I realize that the times in my life when I should have been most afraid are the times when I don't seem to give it much thought at all. I tend to think of myself as a total wuss, yet I wonder why I don't seem to panic when I hear rockets hit nearby (3rd such incidence for me in recent years). Am I a bit nuts now or just ignoring my mortality?

You've become less fearful.
Welcome to the club.
When I went through Katrina... mild amounts of fear set in.
Then Ophelia...a dodgy walk in the park.
Then Rita... definitely annoying.

As long as you make it to that plane on Tuesday... and continue to share your experiences with us, all is good.

*hugs...
me

Thanks...by the way, I've been enjoying reading your posts.

*curtsies...

Likewise.

Yes, its strange, isn't it? There have times in my life when others have thought me crazy for not being all panic-striken and fearful when it would have been truly warranted. It wasn't a conscious decision, of course.

I think its part of our defence mechanism? There, at times, will be a certain amount of fear to get the adrenalin flowing, become alert, protect oneself... but also a "reining in", if you like, in order to not panic and result in doing something to actually put us more in jeopardy?

I remember the quote in Speed.... "guts will get you so far and then they will get you killed". Its a fine balance.......
JMO.

sometimes life takes you thro' a roller coaster ride ... long enugh to make you feel .. i think it is not so bad after all.. making you braver and stronger by the day and minute ..

dont know what to say ... but u r facing the inevitable everyday and that too right in the face .. so you r not afraid anymore ... needs a lot of courage actually ...

it's a phase that will pass by ....