Diary Rooms, Afghanistan now available on Amazon with proceeds going to Combat Stress the Veterans' mental health charity. Please see:
Diary Rooms, Afghanistan
Thursday 13 November 2014
Monday 27 October 2014
Thursday 3 April 2014
In Our Own Words, the book - follow progress on Facebook
Please follow this link to the Facebook page for the book, please like and share if you are able.
Many thanks.
https://www.facebook.com/InOurOwnWordsAfghanistan
Many thanks.
https://www.facebook.com/InOurOwnWordsAfghanistan
Wednesday 5 February 2014
'In Our Own Words' nominated for culture award
Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum: "We're entering the 2014 Museums & Heritage Awards for our 2013 exhibition, In Our Own Words: Soldiers Thoughts from Afghanistan. For our small team it was both groundbreaking and deeply humbling to curate Derek Eland's artwork and put it in historical context through our collections.
If you work in the culture industry, please support us by nominating us for the 'most inspiring museum/ heritage attraction' category. The 5 most nominated will be shortlisted and then opened to public vote. PLEASE SHARE THIS LINK ON YOUR OWN PAGES"
If you work in the culture industry, please support us by nominating us for the 'most inspiring museum/ heritage attraction' category. The 5 most nominated will be shortlisted and then opened to public vote. PLEASE SHARE THIS LINK ON YOUR OWN PAGES"
Friday 24 January 2014
The book, last call
'My mother’s battle with cancer': final transcription on the last day of fundraising for the book, please support and share at: http://igg.me/at/InOurOwnWordsAfghanistan/x/5439516
"Its my 1st time here and has
been an experience, a lot of mixed
feelings and scary moments but
some how under all this poverity
and wartorn country I still find
connections to home in ways by
seen children playing games just
like I did but without the soldiers
and the threat of Taliban
on their families.
The one major
comparison I have is we had
a contact one day in which
the Taliban ambush us and
we pinned down taking fire from 3
positions we had no choice but
to make a sprint across open ground
cause we could not use the ditch
cause of the IED threat. Once we
took off across the open ground they
started to smash us, it was crazy
round going everywhere. It was not a
case of am I going to get shot it was
where am i going to get shot. With
the help of God and the drive of a
soilder we all made it across. We
patrolled back when it died down but
as we walked back to the base i seen
what looked like a father and son
working in the fields. It brought
my mind back
to when me and my father worked
together making a living for our family
but the only battle we had was
the one my mother had to fight off
cancer and the only soilder we had in our
safe environment in the west of
Ireland was my mam cause she
fought and still fights her illness
What
i am trying to say is no matter where
you go in life or what you do your
family memories will never be forgotten
and influence you many ways
without you even known.
If any younger
children read this all i can say
is treasure your family cause
thinking about them can get
you through the toughest
times in life even it it’s the
hell hole of the earth like
helmand afganistan"
"Its my 1st time here and has
been an experience, a lot of mixed
feelings and scary moments but
some how under all this poverity
and wartorn country I still find
connections to home in ways by
seen children playing games just
like I did but without the soldiers
and the threat of Taliban
on their families.
The one major
comparison I have is we had
a contact one day in which
the Taliban ambush us and
we pinned down taking fire from 3
positions we had no choice but
to make a sprint across open ground
cause we could not use the ditch
cause of the IED threat. Once we
took off across the open ground they
started to smash us, it was crazy
round going everywhere. It was not a
case of am I going to get shot it was
where am i going to get shot. With
the help of God and the drive of a
soilder we all made it across. We
patrolled back when it died down but
as we walked back to the base i seen
what looked like a father and son
working in the fields. It brought
my mind back
to when me and my father worked
together making a living for our family
but the only battle we had was
the one my mother had to fight off
cancer and the only soilder we had in our
safe environment in the west of
Ireland was my mam cause she
fought and still fights her illness
What
i am trying to say is no matter where
you go in life or what you do your
family memories will never be forgotten
and influence you many ways
without you even known.
If any younger
children read this all i can say
is treasure your family cause
thinking about them can get
you through the toughest
times in life even it it’s the
hell hole of the earth like
helmand afganistan"
Tuesday 21 January 2014
Two wars
Hi, I'm in the last week of my book campaign and am transcribing the postcards for the book content and came across this one, which has always moved me more than most. Here is the exact transcript.
Two wars
The thing that im going to write about is something
that is never portrayed in the press or anywhere i
have ever seen, Its not a war story where rounds
are landing everywhere or on the other hand it isnt
a daily log, It is something that all people dont
understand until you have been somewhere like this
for this amount of time. Im going to write about
the day to day struggle of being away. When
people think of being in Afghanistan i think
they instantly think of soldiers being shot at
and bombs landing around people, and while
those things happen daily those are the things
that you came here for, you came here to fight
a war. On the other side the thoughts of
the people you miss and the things you miss
and the thoughts you have about this, when you
aren’t out fighting or keeping yourself
busy this is what is constantly going through
your head. What your girlfriend was wearing last
time you saw her, what she did, said, what she
smelt like, what she will look like and if
anything will have changed while you have been away
and if you will fit in with the changes when you
get back. I sit here and miss just fitting into
the daily routine at home, sleeping in a normal bed
seeing all the people you love, seeing your home, sitting
down and relaxing. Sometimes it drives you crazy missing
everything and sometimes it makes you smile knowing
that you will have those things to look forward
to again. As I said at the start yes we are
over here fighting a war and yes bad things
are constantly happeing out here but take away
with you something else when you read this, hold
onto the people you love and the things that you
love doing. If you are close to someone that is
away out here know that you will always be in
their minds because there are two wars bring faught,
one which is publicised and one which goes on
in a soldiers head when everything goes quiet….
Written by a soldier with A coy 1 Royal Irish
Please support and share at: http://igg.me/at/InOurOwnWordsAfghanistan/x/5439516
Two wars
The thing that im going to write about is something
that is never portrayed in the press or anywhere i
have ever seen, Its not a war story where rounds
are landing everywhere or on the other hand it isnt
a daily log, It is something that all people dont
understand until you have been somewhere like this
for this amount of time. Im going to write about
the day to day struggle of being away. When
people think of being in Afghanistan i think
they instantly think of soldiers being shot at
and bombs landing around people, and while
those things happen daily those are the things
that you came here for, you came here to fight
a war. On the other side the thoughts of
the people you miss and the things you miss
and the thoughts you have about this, when you
aren’t out fighting or keeping yourself
busy this is what is constantly going through
your head. What your girlfriend was wearing last
time you saw her, what she did, said, what she
smelt like, what she will look like and if
anything will have changed while you have been away
and if you will fit in with the changes when you
get back. I sit here and miss just fitting into
the daily routine at home, sleeping in a normal bed
seeing all the people you love, seeing your home, sitting
down and relaxing. Sometimes it drives you crazy missing
everything and sometimes it makes you smile knowing
that you will have those things to look forward
to again. As I said at the start yes we are
over here fighting a war and yes bad things
are constantly happeing out here but take away
with you something else when you read this, hold
onto the people you love and the things that you
love doing. If you are close to someone that is
away out here know that you will always be in
their minds because there are two wars bring faught,
one which is publicised and one which goes on
in a soldiers head when everything goes quiet….
Written by a soldier with A coy 1 Royal Irish
Please support and share at: http://igg.me/at/InOurOwnWordsAfghanistan/x/5439516
Friday 17 January 2014
British PM supports Afghanistan book
British Prime Minister writes to support my Afghanistan book at:
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/in-our-own-words-handwritten-postcards-by-front-line-soldiers-in-afghanistan
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/in-our-own-words-handwritten-postcards-by-front-line-soldiers-in-afghanistan
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