Canadian soldiers ready to reenlist (God love 'em all! - a must read!)
CNEWS.canoe.ca ^ | December 31, 2006 | Bill Graveland

Canadian soldiers ready to reenlist

cnews.canoe.ca
December 31, 2006

By BILL GRAVELAND

HOWZ-E MADAD, Afghanistan (CP) - Sweltering heat in the summer, frigid cold in the winter, sleeping in the desert and the ever-present threat of Taliban attacks doesn't seem to be a downside for some Canadian soldiers serving here.

As a matter of fact, with the end of this rotation coming up in February, a number are already talking about coming back for another tour of duty.

Forty-four Canadian soldiers have died in this war-torn country since 2002 and 2006 has been the bloodiest year for our troops since the Korean War.

But individuals like Cpl. Mark Ejdrygiewicz, 22, of Lethbridge, Alta., believe a six-month tour isn't long enough to get the job done.

Cpl. Mark Ejdrygiewicz, of Lethbridge, Alta.,
poses for a photo on a stopover in Panjwaii
district, Afghanistan on Saturday.
(CP PHOTO/Bill Graveland)

"On this six month tour we did a lot. There was a lot of progress made: Op Medusa and down in Panjwaii and the districts there opening up the schools and building highways," said Ejdrygiewicz, known as "Edge" to his patrol mates, as he rode in the back of a light armoured vehicle near Howz-e Madad.

"We're doing what we can but we know the Taliban are going to come back. Winter's here and they've gone back to Pakistan," he said, taking a drag from his cigarette. "We've got a foothold on the ground in the area but in the back of your mind you know they will be coming back and it will be another threat."

And Ejdrygiewicz takes his job very seriously. Written in felt pen on the cover of his helmet in Pashtu is "Taliban Relocation Service," a tribute to fallen comrade Master Cpl. Jeffrey Walsh, who was killed by an accidental rifle discharge last summer.

"One of our good friends who passed away back in August, Jeff Walsh, on his first roto, he had the acronym TRS and his idea was to make T-shirts for this platoon," smiled Ejdrygiewicz.

"When he passed away it's something we all kind of held onto and put that tag onto everything. Some interpreters helped me translate it into Pashtu and I thought it would be a nice thing to put on the helmet," he added.

"The reason it is in Pashtu is so we can have a laugh and the locals can have a laugh as well and it's caught on pretty well so far."

As far as Ejdrygiewicz is concerned, any soldier that doesn't want to come back for another tour here, shouldn't have come in the first place.

"Being gung ho, being enthusiastic about doing his job? Hey that's a good thing," he said. "If you've got soldiers out here wanting to go home, miserable and complaining, they're a risk to you, they're a risk to themselves and they don't need to be here."

It will be time to go home only when the Afghan people are able to take care of themselves said Ejdrygiewicz.

With his leave just a day or two away, the last thing Cpl. Dave Taylor of Owen Sound, Ont., should be thinking about is coming back.

Taylor, 35, will be heading home to see his new daughter, Xandra, who was born a couple of days before Christmas.

But he is already talking about next time.

"I love doing this and I personally can't think of anything I would rather do. When I get back, we'll start our training cycle again. The break will be nice but I'll be chomping at the bit to get back to work," Taylor chuckled.

"The wife won't like it," he shrugged. "I gotta find a happy compromise or some medium ground. Not going with the battalion on Roto 108 over here would be tough, but I would be home for Christmas this time."

The commanding officer of A Company 2nd PPCLI, Maj. Mike Wright, isn't surprised at the commitment of his men to the mission. He watched them grow over the past 4 1/2 months.

"Less than a week after they arrived here they were in their first ambush and everyone stepped up together," said Wright.

"It's part of being a soldier to complain and to bitch but when it counts these guys know when to turn it on."