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He spoke the same words to me that his father is now speaking of
his late son. Matthew Ryan Kahler, of Granite Falls, said to me last
year that he’d “always wanted to be in the military, since he was 10.”
When I heard those words spoken by his father on an MPR interview
this past Monday morning, I recalled when Matthew had spoken them to me.
He, his extended family, his wife and several of their friends,
had invited me to a send off when Kahler was home from being deployed
overseas in Italy.
At the send off, I took photos of Kahler, his wife, his sister and friends laughing, smiling, sharing stories of the good times.
They joked with me and accepted me as if I were a member of the troop
and had just as much to offer to the conversation as the others.
There was a sense of belonging that I picked up on in Kahler. He was a proud young man and he knew he was loved.
He told me he believed in what he was being called to do, yet respected those individuals who share a different belief.
He and my wife were elementary friends, so we shared some stories in this regard as well.
We drank punch, played games, snacked and visited. He hugged and held his daughter in his arms beaming with pride.
When I heard a soldier from Granite Falls had died in combat action
this past weekend I knew it would be someone that I had either
interviewed, photographed or knew.
I was sad to hear that such a fine young man had lost his life, and if
it is as they suspect, a friendly fire incident, that makes it all the
harder for me to accept.
I can’t imagine the grief his family is feeling, or any of the families
for that matter, on any side of the conflict, must be feeling.
I have never shared Kahler’s conviction and still believe things can be resolved without waging war.
I know many will argue and the crux of that argument will be “better to
fight them there than here,” but I still believe in the power of
communication and, not that any leader would do so as not to seem weak,
but I believe if we addressed some of the mistakes we too have made,
that maybe, just maybe, we could all just get along.
Not that it will bring Matthew, or the 70 other Minnesotan’s who have
been killed in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan, or the 3,940 American
soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice (as of Jan. 28), but perhaps a
different policy will help bring the next soldier home sooner and safer.
Despite my obvious difference in opinion, Kahler and I could talk
openly about it and he accepted my feelings on the matter, just as I
did his. He didn’t try to change my line of thinking and in fact,
promised to fight for people like me. He believed that strongly in what
he was doing.
God bless Matthew Ryan Kahler, his daughter, his wife and their family
and friends. He was truly a great American man, and I am glad to say
that I got to meet him. God bless the community of Granite Falls, and
his mother, who works in a school very near my home in Montevideo. The
thoughts and prayers of myself and my family are with you all.
Kahler, 29, died Saturday in Afghanistan after being shot near the
mountainside village of Waygul. He was declared dead at an Army base in
Fenty. Army officials believe an Afghanistan guard mistook him for an
enemy, according to reports published Monday.
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