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Show Page Two - The Pyramid - September 18, 2003 mmv Merrill Ogden I So near "watering" by being the plant which was so near to the tap, yet so far away. In my bathroom, (Im sure you want to hear about my bathroom) there is a small potted house-plan- t. I lives now?" Who do we need to visit more often? How can we find the time to enrich our lives through our relationships with friends and family? Funerals are poor times to think of such things, unless the thoughts moti- view. The playwright wrote back to the critic something like, "Here I sit in the smallest room in my house. I have your review in front of me, but I shall soon put it behind me. ") Anyway, back to my houseplant. I think its one of those things that we call a "Creeping Charlie. " Theyre pleasant to look at and hard to kill. Not impossible to kill, but it takes some real professional ne- vate us to do better with those that are still living. Im sure we all have relationships that need better care. People are like plants. They need care and "waterlike ing." Of course, plants, there are many varieties of people and Some are relationships. like a cactus or a Creeping remain Charlie. They healthy and vibrant with low maintenance and occasional moisture. Others are like water lilies. Being watered is not enough; they have to be IN the water. Most of us are somewhere in the middle. Were daisies and iris. Fairly hardy, but still needing some maintenance. I guess the point I want wrung out of this metaphor is that sometimes were the water and sometimes were the to do one of these things in. I would estimate that this plant resides no more than from the faucet at the sink in the glect es whats see might think that can but, youre wrong. you The plant is not dead. But youre partially right. The plant suffers from occasional dehydraYou semi-aw-kwa- rd tion. Unbelievable isnt it? The plant is that close to water in a place where at least two people are in and out several times a day and the dang thing doesnt get a regular drink of water! For some reason I thought of this plant while I sat in Aden Johnsons funeral last week in Moroni. Adens wife, Royce, passed away last May, so it didnt take long for the to "whistling Sanpeter" join up with her. I was feeling a twinge of regret at the funeral. What I was thinking was that I missed out on a lot of "water" by not visiting with the Johnsons more than I did. plant. Sometimes we deny ourselves of the water that is so easy to obtain. Like bathroom my plant, it might be just "18-inche- s" away. Often we think in terms of visiting someone with the idea of us cheering them up. Maybe we should be a little more selfish in our thinking. It motivate may us more effectively to get out of our TV chair if were looking to cheer ourselves up. We need to make that contact or visit with someone in our life who we know will cheer us up and make us "feel good." Ironically, its almost a two-wa- y street. Those who are visited are cheered and feel good as a result of the visit. In school, I believe we called that a symbiotic relationship. A winwin deal. Be ready to "water" me Sanpete. You never know when I may knock on YOUR door... Merrill always They lived right there on the main drag in Moroni and I passed by many times. times Numerous thought to myself, "Man, the associa- enjoyed tion I did have with the and Moroni Johnsons. Sanpete will miss them. So the question now is, "Where is the "water" that were neglecting in our It looks nice sitting on the vanity and adds to the atmosphere of that smallest of rooms in the house. (Saying that reminds me of a quip. I dont remember the quote exactly or who said it. I believe it was a playwright who was responding to a critic who had written a less than favorable re- bathroom. Can you coming here? my neglected I I need to stop in and say "hi," but Ill do it later when Im not in such a hurry." Don V cry foul Dear Editor: As a former soldier, and the son of a former soldier, I read Brian L. Olmsteads "My View" with great inter- - He expressed concern that the public might "cry foul and throw me to the wolves for whining." Whining was an excellent choice of words. He also claimed the right to "voice est. Supata's Laadlaf Nawipapar THF PHRHfTlin cusps 365-58- my opinion. yur 0) Utah, 84647 49 West Mnin Street FAX- (435)462-213- 4 - 462-24- 59 pyranndavpro.(0(n Parkinson Kirk Managing Editor NsOhna Office DeAnn Houghton Office SUBSCRIPTION . . Publisher Cheryl Brewer cn! County CORRESPONDENTS Benton Petersen Doug Johnson Ray LaFollette 436-876- 0 835-868- 9 NSHS Sports 462-216- 1 Send change of address to The Pyramid, 49 West Mai n Street, Wt. Pleasant, UT 84647. Periodical postage paid at Mt. Pleasant, UT and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: I - duy yu ve as a us- - soldi; The military does not, will not and never has been oper- ated by common consent. To those who Plan t0 Join the National Guard or Re serves, the military will send y?u a check every month, give you benefits, vacations and pay for your schooling. 1 return, you go where you are calJed and do what yu are told to do. Michael S. Wren, HeberCity RATES S20 per yeor-50- ( per copy $23 per yeor outside Sanpete Barbara Gordon " n rieht to make public complaints about Sorry- Published Weekly at Mt. Pleasant Telephone: IMS own Cucumbers are members 0f the gourd family and natives of India. They are vines that use tendrils for support. Bamboo grows rapidly because ft grows in several places at the same time. Mimosa, a native to South America, is a member of the em.me familv , Butterflies have a strong sense of smell. Soldier questions role in Iraq Editors note: The following letter was printed in The Deseret News. It was submitted by Mt. Pleasant resident Dennis Slack. Dear Editor: When the 1457th Engineer Battalion was activated in early February 2003, there were many unanswered questions. Among them were whether or not the United States would be going to war with Iraq and exactly what would be the role of our battalion in or out of conflict. As a soldier of that battalion, I had many other questions of a personal nature: What would happen td my wife and five children if I left for a year, and what would happen to my job and career? Since I was in the second semester of a doctorate program, what would happen to my school? And how would I handle the stresses of combat? As a battalion of "weekend warriors" in the National Guard, our role would become defined. The last week of April 2003, our battalion was sent to southwest Asia in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The second phase of our another deployment was in of nation the layover Kuwait as we waited to hear what unit we would be worke basis. ing with on a Here is where additional questions started to appear. Within our first week of we were being able to hear the President declare that combat operations were over and that the official rebuilding of Iraq had full-tim- begun. One of my new questions: i, If combat was over, what would we, combat engineers, be doing? We were told that there were many tasks that required our expertise. After four weeks in Kuwait, our battalion was attached to the First Armored Divisions Engineer Brigade and we were on our way to Baghdad, Iraq. The third, and current, phase of our deployment has been our time here in Baghdad. After living in Iraq for 102 days and being separated from our families for 204 days, my squad has worked in our specialty for 10 percent of the time. Im not saying the other 81 days in Baghdad have been spent lying around doing nothing, we have been busy. We have hauled gravel, excavated a bombing site, cleaned up the amusement park adjacent to the Baghdad Zoo, worked traffic control, and, on many occasions, been tasked as a security element for convoy travel and work-sit- e protection. Here is my concern: I believe the soldiers of the Battalion 1457th Engineer have been called into full--tiduty and separated from their families and civilian lives to perform operations that should have been tasked out to units that specialize in those areas. I also believe that the roles of peacekeeping and rebuilding, as determined by Congress, should be accommiliplished by the full-tim- e without use the of tary, reserve components, if at all possible. for reserve Recruiting members has always military included the possibility of activation in times of war. My perception, which appears to have been a false one, was always that the reservists would fill the gaps e ranks. within the e is one there If member of the United States Army who is being paid a salary to maintain his or her combat readiness, why am I in Baghdad controlling traffic with my ? new unanswered My questions are these: In spite of the good deeds accomplished by the 1457th in Iraq, should we even be here? full-tim- full-tim- M-16- And, what is the future role of citizen soldiers for international peacekeeping or rebuilding operations? I believe the answers to these questions are critical to the future of the Utah National Guard. If units can be deployed and then tasked with missions outside of their specialties, and if the federal government is going to be rotating reserve units through yearlong deployments every e years as recently and Stripes, in Stars reported how many young men and women will be lining up to accept the job? I only hope that our de three-to-fiv- ployment has not set a precedent for the years to come. Now before anyone cries foul and throws me to the wolves for whining, I need to say: Im voicing my opinion, not yours. Allow me to do that. Im in Baghdad doing the job. There has not been one assignment given to my squad that we have failed to accomplish and we have done an excellent job. The other point I want to make, before I become wolf food, is that apparently there have been stories written about the great accomplishments of the 1457th Engineer Battalion during this deployment. I have not personally read all the articles, but the word about each of them is that they are written from the "rose-color- ed glasses" view- point. I wanted to balance the scales a bit; everything isnt roses in Baghdad. I hope more people than me are asking the question: Why are we here? I describe myself as a husband, father, educator and soldier, who lives in Spring City. Brian L. Olmstead Spring City Commander writes to friends, family Editors note: This letter was sent in response to Brian Olmsteads letter that appeared in the Deseret News. To the friends and family of A Company: I am sure most of you have now heard the real possibility exits that A Company will be here in Iraq until next spring. This is indeed a very stressful and difficult announcement for everyone involved. Additionally, many of you by now have probably read the editorial sent to the Salt Lake Tribune written by one of our soldiers, unbeknownst to myself, questioning our involvement here in Iraq. I would like to first address the latter. Our mission here was and continues to be the restabilization of Iraq culminating in the eventual return of Iraqi rule by Iraqis. Some of the missions we have been called on to perform fall outside of what we have typically trained for, but are important missions which fall well within our scope of work as combat engineers. A very large portion of stabilizing Iraq is bringing normalcy back to the populace. Our work at the Baghdad Zoo and Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) went none-the-le- ss a long way to accomplishing this task. Before BIAP was reopened, the only way commercial goods could be transported to Baghdad was a hazardous 450 mile trek from Kuwait. If you were a businessman, your only access to Baghdad was through this same gauntlet. Restoration of this pivotal piece of the economic infrastructure was accomplished in part by your loved ones here in Iraq. Likewise, the Baghdad Zoo is one of the most recognized landmarks here in Baghdad. The of this Zoo was a significant step towards bringing normalcy and organization to the chaos that was here before we arrived. Once again, your loved ones were critical to removing the military defenses Saddam had established there the zoo. and in True we also perform missions typically many associated with being a combat engineer such as demolitions and force protection, but these unconventional missions are as, if not more, critical to accomplishing the ultimate goal in Iraq. While this soldier who wrote the editorial is able to his constitutional exercise right, one previously not afforded Iraqis, it is, in his own words, his opinion. This opinion, however, is not reflective of the reality here in Iraq and is not one shared by the majority. As for our surprise extension of duty. I acutely feel the pain of every soldier and loved ones that they have at home. By my calculations, my boy, whom I have yet to meet, will probably be walking by the time I return home. I will miss out on his first year of life. The thought of my girl growing a year older in my absence completely tears at my heart. I once heard that character is not defined by the events in your life buy how you choose to deal with those events. I would never dream of suggesting how any of those reading this should choose to react to this news. This is probably one of the most bitter pills I have had to swallow, but it is completely out of my control. however, My reaction, remains my choice. Therefore, I choose to continue to complete the missions handed to me, ensure the safety of your loved ones the best I can, encourage them to be their best, try hard not to complain, pray for the safety and security of my young family at home, and quietly hope for a quick and safe return. Every day is a set closed to home. Captain Jason Reading Commanding, A Company 1457th ECB Citizens must help to keep their rights Dear Editor: I just recently saw, on the news, where a man was having his home taken away from him by a home owners association for a miner ordinance violation in Florida. The individual had put up a flag poll to fly the American flag. The ordinance stated the flag pole had to be 21 feet tall. His was 20 feet, one inch. He was in violation. This type of thing is happening all over the United States in states such as New Mexico, Idaho, and even in Utah. It is up to us, as citizens of Sanpete County, to be on top of our elected officials. whether they be city or county. We must keep of what is going on in our city and county council meetings so that this kind of thing will not happen here. We have constitutional rights as citizens of the United States, and ordinances must not infringe on those rights. te Glen Morris, Ephraim ' We forget because must, and not because will. we we Arnold It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature. |