During the month of December 2001 I elevated to the rank of Specialist (E-4) which was seen at the time as a glorified private. However, the days following the promotion I started walking a little taller with my bird chest poked out.. It was obvious to all that I was one proud new Specialist.
I had been informed that my squad (10 Soldiers) were going to be conducting an interdiction mission inside of a small nearby Albania town (population maybe 200). It basically meant that for 24 hours we were going to be hiding out in one of the few tall buildings there… waiting… and watching. For what you ask? Well, for smugglers and war criminals that had been harassing some of the locals to reveal themselves. This mission was unique.. and I needlessly to say was thrilled.
We must have been on the road for roughly an hour before we pulled our vehicles behind an old stone building in the middle of the night. For this being the heart of the town the entire area was completely blacked out. Everyone in my squad climbed the stairs to the top floor of the abandoned rock three story building. This included a translator that we had all just recently met. My Squad Leader then developed a two Soldier guard roster and it just so happened I had the second shift of guard. So, after a brief hour nap I was awaken with a sharp shove from a tired Soldier who simply stated “Let’s go.. wake up Curet.. it’s your shift”. I laid still with my eyes open for a few seconds.. watching my foggy breathe as I exhaled. I must have looked like a frozen burrito wrapped up in my sleeping bag. Unzipping my bag I was able to appreciate how incredibly cold it had been on this abandoned stone floor. I hastily threw on the rest of my gear. The guard position was only maybe 40 feet from my cot. Upon arriving for duty I asked “So, anything I should know about before you guys go to bed?” One of the Soldiers turned to me and said “Craziest thing man, look over there.” He pointed straight into the darkness outside. I didn’t have the night vision goggles yet so I couldn’t see anything he was pointing at. He continued “I swear there was a female on the roof of that building just a minute ago, and she had some sort of music playing as she danced and danced”. He remove his goggles and smirked at me “That’s wild stuff right?” I chuckled and nodded. The other relief Soldier joining me finally arrived and the original guards mumbled “Ya’ll have fun.” Then the two tired Soldiers tossed me the goggles and started to head for their cots.
For the next 10 minutes I stared intently through my night vision goggles at the two story building where this supposed female had been dancing. The building I assumed was maybe a couple hundred feet away. At the most I saw maybe a stray cat scampering on a roof, nothing else. The Soldier next to me was busy fighting off the “Z” monster.. struggling to keep awake. Then suddenly I began to hear a faint musical sound from the distance. A shadowy female figure slowly emerged on the roof top swaying side to side with the music. I looked down at my watch… it was 1AM. I didn’t know what to think, so I just watched and grinned. The whole dancing bit lasted maybe 20 minutes before she disappeared. During this time I had nudged my fellow guard awake, but he didn’t seem to show any interest… maybe he thought I was all in my imagination.
The next morning I awoke around 0630 and realized I left my hygiene bag in the HMMWV, so I darted down the stairwell and outside towards our vehicle and almost ran straight into a local female villager. This is the closest I have been to women in the last few months. She appear to be in her mid-twenties. She stood at about 5’6, fair complexion, brown hair and eyes, modestly dressed. She happened to be feeding some goats that decided to mill around the entrance of our surveillance position. I smiled and bowed my head in an apologetic manner. She replied in a friendly tone speaking Albanian. I then turned and continued to retrieve my bag. As I secured my bag and slammed the door on the vehicle I was startled to see our Interpreter shaving behind the HMMWV. He looked up at me with a smile and said “You, know she invited you up for tea sometime.. she lives right over there”. He pointed directly at the two story building I was staring at last night. He let out a hardy laugh and shrugged his shoulders before going back to shaving his face.
Upon reuniting with my squad upstairs I learned of a presence patrol that we were going to be conducting. Everyone was going on patrol except the two Soldiers on guard duty. I personally didn’t feel like walking around for miles that morning. I tried convincing my team leader to leave me behind in event something bad happened…. after all three Soldiers on guard would be better than just two. Oddly enough he listened and told the Squad Leader I would be staying back as well.
After the squad departed on their dismounted patrol I told the two guys on guard the whole story about what happened last night and also about this morning. They told me I had to capitalize on this lone opportunity, and I had to do it now. I figured… you know what… they’re right. I was going to walk down to her house and see if I could make this “tea party” happen. Then I thought it would seem really intimidating if I went with all my army gear on.. let me just shed that gear off right here.. and walk down there like a normal man. I set my machine gun down, my body armor, helmet, and radio. The Soldiers on guard told me if anything happened to just run out the house and give them a signal. **The whole thing sounds absurd now that I’m typing this down** I then started my way walking to what I assumed was her house.
As I approached her house I noticed her walking out her door to sweep some snow off her doorsteps. How fortunate I thought this is my chance. She spotted me with a completely puzzled expression on her face. Then I made the universal signal of tea time.. by holding an imaginary tea cup and motioning it towards my mouth. That seem to do just the trick.. her eyes lit up and then signaled me to come in.
I noticed the first room I entered appeared like a typical American garage.. which was not exactly what I was expecting. Then I followed her into a second room. As the door opened to my surprise I saw three grown men sitting down near a fireplace in a small but cozy backroom. The largest man in the middle had a bottle of vodka grasped his hand and was leading a rowdy conversation with the other two men. It became apparent that all these men were residents of this house and were highly intoxicated. However, they were sober enough to realize I didn’t belong there, and they motioned me to sit down next to them. At this point I was worried about the whole situation I had gotten myself into. What was I expecting coming here? Are these men going to let me leave? Will my squad leader find out I had snuck out?
The woman brushed right past me and had a kettle in her hand.. she was obviously making some sort of warm beverage for me. The larger man started addressing me directly and asked me a question. I unfortunately do not speak Albanian. He repeated his question increasing his tone. I just forced a smile upon my face. Then for the third time he asked the same question in a demanding tone this time he forcefully pushed the bottle of alcohol straight into my chest. I replied with pointing to my American flag on my right sleeve.. and stating in English “I’m sorry I am an American Soldier we can’t drink on duty” Then I threw my hands up in defeat. The men started getting more aggressive in their tone and gestures.. it was at this time I knew I had to get out of there. I stood up slowly and started backing up towards the door. The men looked slightly offended. I pointed at my watch to show them I was late and had to get going. Then I rotated my fingers in a circle gesturing that I would be returning soon. I carefully exited back into the front “garage looking” room, and just as I was about to run out the house all together.. the woman came back with a cup of tea in her hand looking at me with a sad expression. I took a couple steps towards her, and she in turn took a few steps closer to me. She set the tea cup down and held her hands out in front of her and I proceeded to interlock them gently with my cold hands. For a few seconds we stared at each holding each other’s hands. Then I recalled that she enjoys to dance.. and began to sway myself back and forth in an attempt to dance with her. She responded favorable and we danced in circles around the chilly garage room. There was no sense in trying to verbal communicate, so we danced the universal language of attraction. I then pulled her close to me and almost simultaneously our lips met. For the first time that day I felt actual warmth. At that same moment I noticed my squad patrolling through the window behind her. I instantly ran through the door leaving her and sprinted back towards the guard building.. the guards on duty cheered and fist pumped when they saw me running towards their position. I made it just in time. Luckily I didn’t get caught and nobody reported me. Everyone wanted details on what happened.. so I would tell the story over and over again during the next couple of days. The very next day the mission was complete and it was time to head back to main base. As our vehicle pulled off into the afternoon snow flurry I noticed the woman sadly standing outside on her porch waving and watching me fade off into the horizon… never to see each other again.
