Canadian Forces (CF) members serving far from home have always done their best to keep in touch with family and friends. Captain Nichola Goddard, the first female CF member killed during combat duty, wrote the following e-mail to her parents from Afghanistan just weeks before her death
Photo: Department of National Defence
May 2, 2006
Dear Mum and Dad,
The days seem to move along at their own pace. Some days fly by, and others creep along. We are officially at the halfway point now, though I can’t believe I’ve been here for three months. I try to remind myself to appreciate every experience—even the ones I don’t really enjoy. 🙂
I have been thinking a lot about fate lately. It was such an accident of birth that we ended up where we did when we did, that we are where we are now, with the choices that we have available to us. It seems to me that we have such a burden of responsibility to make the world a better place for those who were born into far worse circumstances. It is more than donating money to charities; it is taking action and trying to make things better. You have both shown me that throughout my life, but here I realize it more than ever before.
My current job and role in Afghanistan is part of that, but it is more the non-governmental organizations that come later. They are the ones that really make the difference. I like to think that my being here means they will be able to come that much sooner and operate more freely. I will be looking for more opportunities to volunteer in Wainwright [Alberta] and to really try to make a difference. It is very humbling to be here, part of something so much bigger than myself.
Love always,
Nichola