A childhood friend of mine, Everett Spain, is serving in Iraq right now. But he is in a very special position: the top aide to Gen. David Petraeus, the new U.S. commander in Iraq. Everett says in a recent interview that he's more or less an executive assistant to the General. Or, as he was quoted as saying, "My job is to make him as efficient and effective as possible in order to expand his positive impact."
My parents are still good friends with Everett's parents (in fact, they were at our celebratory diner when Ava Marie arrived a month ago), but reading the article made me realize that I have lost touch with Everett and his life. He's married now with four kids, the last one being adopted from China.
The article goes on to say that Everett has already been wounded in fighting in Baghdad and received the Purple Heart award. (I wasn't aware of this either.) I hope that he stays safe for the rest of his time there and is able to return to his family back in the US soon.
You can read the whole article about Everett (entitled Commander's right-hand man) from the Pensacola News Journal website. Thanks for passing it along, Mom!
