Newtown:

Hometown America

(The following letter was received for publication from the family of 1st Lt Rob Anders who is serving with the US Army  in Afghanistan.)

To the Editor:

The Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve at St Rose is a family tradition and one of my enduring memories of Newtown. This would otherwise be the tenth consecutive Midnight Mass for me with my family, but alas I am away this season. For the last ten months I’ve been operating as a rifle platoon leader with the 25th Infantry Division on the frontiers of Afghanistan. Christmas, though rightfully special, is just another day for us in these high mountain deserts. The patrols continue and the mission never rests, whether it’s hunting terrorists or delivering humanitarian aid to destitute villages. Though Christmas in Afghanistan presents quite a contrast, the spirit is the same.

The human condition here is as bleak as the landscape. The people have nearly nothing. Their houses are made of hardened mud, and only stores of firewood and collections of blankets offer the people a chance to survive the wicked winter months up here at 7,500 feet. Even in summer life is still hard. The people, particularly the children, are disengaged from the careless whims we enjoyed growing up. Children aren’t concerned with schoolwork, playing sports, or watching television, but rather they are preoccupied with scraping together another meal in the wretched bazaar.

The contrast is astounding. I have been blessed with the opportunity to grow up in Newtown, and for me to recall my experiences there, from this vantage point, is overwhelming. It seems that this land and these people are forgotten. Time itself is even lost here. And yet, there is hope in the children. You can see it in their faces, in their endless curiosity, and in their fascination about who we are and where we call home.

Consider for a moment life in Newtown; the children here could not imagine how beautiful the Pootatuck is in autumn, or how lights make a soccer field shine at night. It’d be impossible for them to understand why people might dress up and celebrate the town in a parade down Main Street. It would certainly confuse them to see a great flagpole in the middle of the road, not because of it’s placement, but because they’ve never seen asphalt.

It isn’t just the major events or places that highlight the stark contrast of civilizations, but rather it’s all the things we have the luxury never to think about; the things that we might take for granted or leave unappreciated. Everything from paved roads, to clean water and electricity, to education, medicine, and law for example, are some of the blessings we have that do not exist here.

Newtown is, for me, “Hometown America.” The values, the traditions, and the people represent all that is good about our country. And though I would love to be at another Midnight Mass at St Rose, it’s comforting to be able to share some of our blessings with the people here, in the spirit of Christmas.

In closing, I’d like to offer a prayer for the people of Afghanistan, that they might one day enjoy the gifts of freedom and opportunity that we have in our hometown, and that the Lord would continue to protect and bless the people who make Newtown such a special place. Amen.

Rob Anders

OrgunE Firebase, Afghanistan                           December 24, 2004