Goodbye Brother Robin by Jeffrey S. Williams It was three oclock on a sunny afternoon of Dec. 14, 2003 when L. Paul Bremer, U.S. Administrator in Iraq, made the infamous announcement, Ladies and gentlemen, we got him. The tyrant is a prisoner. Former Iraq President Saddam Hussein was captured in a spider hole at a farmhouse ten miles from Tikrit. When that announcement was made, I was in the public affairs office at Kirkuk Regional Air Base 110 kilometers away. First there were jubilant cheers of the dozen or so members of the 506th Air Expeditionary Group command staff that gathered in our office, which was followed by silence. Each of us knew that the war was not over. This was just a milestone upon a very long and deadly journey. For most of us in the Air Force and Army who were stationed at Kirkuk, the events of the next few days blurred. Sure there was celebratory fire in the city that night and the alert that we had to wear our helmet and body armor at all times because of the falling spent rounds, but the next few days brought on a greater sense of urgency. I knew that this was a historic moment and that this was a historic place, so I set out to interview as many people as I could to get their initial reaction to the news and then spent the next couple days transcribing tape and writing stories so the folks back home could know what their Soldiers and Airmen were doing on that day. After three days of no sleep (I wasnt the only one, twenty hour days became the norm for most of us that week) we received news that General Richard B. Myers, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was flying in for a U.S.O. show in order to give us a brief respite from our duties. I was on the flightline when the C-17 touched down and taxied up to empty its precious cargo - former Playboy model and Fox Sports sportscaster Leeann Tweeden, wrestler Curt Angle, NASCAR driver Mike Wallace along with actor/comedian Robin Williams. Within three minutes of exiting the aircraft, Robin Williams looked around and spotted a familiar name on an Air Force nametape... mine. He walked directly over to me and said, Hey, Brother Williams. Im glad to see there is someone representing us in this shithole! Hey, Brother Robin. Thanks for coming. Now will you stay and Ill take the bird home? I replied. He laughed. We made small talk for a few minutes. He told me how he enjoyed the flight and was glad to be able to come over and spend a few hours with us. Knowing that our time would be brief (considering I never thought Id even have that much time with him), I gave him one of our wing coins. After I placed it in his hand during a hand shake (which is a customary practice among military members), he was about to slide it into his pocket. I asked him to look at it before he put it away. What am I looking at? he asked while reviewing the side that had the U.S., U.K. and Iraqi flags adorned prominently. I asked him to flip it around. In a low voice, he read the words, Embracing the Suck that was emblazoned on the front next to the U.S. Air Force and Kirkuk Air Base logos. He let out a howl when the words registered with him, which was caught on camera by Senior Master Sergeant Gene LaDoucer. I have something that Ive wanted to say to you for years, I said knowing this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Go ahead. Lay it on me, Brother Williams. If the former VP is such a VIP, shouldnt we keep the PC on the QT, cuz if it leaks to the VC, he could end up an MIA and wed all be put on KP, I said mimicking his intonations from this phrase in the film Good Morning, Vietnam. I see youve been studying my lines. Very good, he said as he received the order to get onto the bus that would take him to the Clam Shack, our recreation center. Thanks for the coin Brother Williams. Well see you after the show. The rec center was filled to capacity with around 1,000 people waiting for the show by the time we arrived. However, as a staff writer/photographer for the public affairs office, I was one of the privileged few who were able to cross the red rope barrier between the entertainers and senior officers and the rest of the troops. When Robin Williams got onto the stage, he immediately went into an energetic diatribe about Saddam Husseins capture, ending it with Im your Baghdaddy now! which was a line that we repeated often for the duration of our deployment. He also regaled us with tales of the Baghdad 500, a race between souped up Humvees and Bradley Fighting Vehicles, before going into his well-known skits. Whenever he was on stage and it was go time, he was high energy. It was no different at Kirkuk. I was taking photos near the stage when he finished his performance. In fact, the applause had still not died down when he walked back over to me. How did I do, Brother Williams? he asked with a hint of insecurity in his voice. Robin, you were fantastic! I said. Its been a very long week over here and we really needed this. Thank you SO much for being here. You dont know how much we appreciate this. Thanks. I really needed to know that, man, he said. The entertainers took the time to sign autographs and take photos with the troops. I dont know how many photos I took that day, but it must have been close to 800. I ran out of battery power before I ran out of space on the flash cards. After about three hours, they were gone. The C-17 departed to its next location to cheer up a few thousand more of our comrades in arms who were going through as exhausting a week as we had. When I heard the news of Brother Robins passing on August 11 and the depression he faced, I immediately thought of his question How did I do? He had a full auditorium of enthusiastic troops who were still applauding and still felt the need to ask how his performance was. I recall the difference between Robin Williams the Person, the seemingly shy and insecure person who I was able to know ever-so-briefly during our two conversations, and Robin Williams the Entertainer, the Type A extrovert that weve seen on stage, film and television. Ive always enjoyed watching Robin Williams ever since the first episode of Mork & Mindy, and rigorously practiced that line from Good Morning, Vietnam since a friend of mine isolated that section of audio off of the VHS tape back in 1989. I spent hours practicing the words and delivery, never knowing that I would recite it to the very actor who gave us those memorable lines. By visiting us in Iraq in our darkest of hours, my respect for him is immeasurable. However, most of us will never face the pressure of always having to perform, of always having to be funny, even when we are not, and of always having to be on guard for the paparazzi and the latest celebrity gossip reporters. We will never know the inner demons that Robin Williams faced in his life that caused him to take his own life and give a permanent solution to a temporary problem. It would have been nice if, before he made his decision, he would have thought about those six USO shows and put himself in our place and think about how we handle the adversity of combat situations and take inspiration from those of us who choose to live despite depression, combat fatigue and PTSD. Perhaps then, he would have realized that his situation, whatever it was, was only temporary. Instead, we have memories. Thankfully, he gave us lots of them. This Air Force Technical Sergeant will always remember that brief conversation during a difficult week and be thankful for being in his presence. Goodbye Brother Robin! We already miss you.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 03:29:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015