Kilroy Was Here!
September 10, 2003

One of the most beloved characters that transcended its military origins is Kilroy, most notably remembered with nearly iconic reverie by those who fought in World War II, dubbed, "The Big One."

The caricature of Kilroy reveals a mousy-looking guy with big eyes and dots for pupils and a large bulbous nose draped over a line signifying a wall, with words roughly scrawled, "Kilroy was here!" Usually the Kilroy drawing is located in some remote or hard to reach place, and by implication gives the viewer the sense that, whoever this Kilroy guy was, he was there before you got there.

During my time in Kuwait and Iraq I had to smile, for on occasion I would find the Kilroy character in a porta-potty, a remote guard post, the side of an LAV (Light Armored Vehicle), and even Saddam Hussein's palace in Babylon. Though I'm disappointed to say that I haven't found him depicted in any chapel settings yet. Now that would really make me smile!

At any rate, the reason I was thinking about Kilroy came about after a visit to the Marines standing watch, guarding our base here at Camp Lemonier, Djibouti, Africa. The captain in charge of the guard force (3rd Battalion 6th Marines, Mike Company; better known as 3/6 Mike) stopped in the office this afternoon to follow up on a conversation we'd had earlier this week. I mentioned I wanted to go around and visit his Marines on post sometime. He said I could go with him and the base CO (Commanding Officer) later in the afternoon at 1730 (That's 5:30 pm for you non-military types).

It just so happened that the time worked out well for me so I agreed to go along. We drove around to the various check-points and guard towers strategically positioned on the base for maximum coverage and effectiveness for defensive fire. There were 50 cal. machine guns mounted on top of turtleback High Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicles (HMMWV, simply called a Humvee or a Hummer, the military's modernized answer to the Jeep from WWII), sniper rifles, 240G machine guns, and the standard M16A2 semiautomatic rifle. Some of the guard locations are built out of 2 X 4s, plywood, and sandbags. Others are forty-foot metal towers. How do I know they are forty feet high? Well, let's see, I asked! And I also climbed every one of them!

As we visited these men on guard it was evident that some Marine standing post was wishing he was somewhere else because he had written on the plywood wall of his guard post, "It's five o'clock somewhere!" Probably a reservist who in his civilian job is used to getting off work at five in the afternoon. Here, though, he's standing guard in shifts, 24/7.

Back in Kuwait, some creative genius used a black marker to write a four-letter word on the interior polypropylene walls of the porta-potties. He clearly was singularly focused because he wrote the same word repeatedly up and down the walls nearly covering the entire inside of the modern-day outhouse. I counted the word written over five hundred times. Oh! You want to know what the word was? I do not wish to offend you, dear reader. But if you must know, the word was "Home." Perhaps this homesick soul should have tried clicking his heels together and wishing he was in Kansas!

Back here in Camp Lemonier I spoke with these young Marines as we made our way from post to post. They were from Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, and California, to mention a few. These hard-chargers would challenge us with a "Halt! Who goes there?" as we approached their area, not allowing us to proceed until we had properly identified ourselves to their satisfaction. Yes, this includes me, the base chaplain, with a gold cross on my collar!

I was very proud of these young men who guard not only our base against attack, but they guard each of you while you rest comfortably in your beds, and go about your daily lives. Thank God for them!

Perhaps my favorite bit of writing that I saw today was on a hand-made sign with the warning, "Beware! Marine on Duty." You see, Kilroy may have been here, but the Marines are here.

Rest comfortably America.