I was traveling with a U.S. convoy as a photographer. They were heading towards the border to leave Iraq. The sky was dark, but a faint ray of light illuminated the vehicles. They were glowing with a fiery red color as they passed by. The trucks had a heavy, massive appearance, their shapes appearing like enormous blocks of rust-colored steel. The images were stunning, and I took several photographs at different angles and compositions. On the back of the trucks, I noticed many expensive and exotic rugs being carried away.

As I walked towards the back of the convoy, I could see Iraqi troops firing mortar rockets at us. There wasn’t a large army, just small pockets of relatively unorganized militia groups. It felt scared and hurried towards the front of the convoy. The only way to leave the country was to exit through a bunker. I entered the bunker with other troops and, traveling from room to room, realized there were no exits or windows. A sense of panic came over us. We were trapped.

This dream occurred about a month before President Bush announced we would pull troops back from Iraq on June 30, 2004. There is darkness over the land, yet the light of God still penetrates through.

Psa 97:2 “Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.”

The dream I feel represents that we are trapped in Iraq. The world will perceive or see that we are stealing their heritage. The rooms in the bunker may represent the nations of the world. Each we turned to left us abandoned and empty, and each left us with no options for leaving the country. The Iraqi forces will continue to attack us in small numbers but will not be able to destroy our forces.