Fallen Soldier

A soldier was killed in Afghanistan last week. A 22-year old from Stange, the village in Norway where I live. Stange is a small place. Everybody knows everybody else. My children knew the fallen soldier. One of my coworkers was his girlfriend's mother. Yesterday, when his body was flown back to Norway, the big grey Hercules airplane flew low over Stange before landing at the military airport near Oslo. Tonight friends are carrying torches in his memory. He was buried at Stange Church in a huge funeral. Busloads of pals from the military, from his soccer team, friends and family came. About 700 people. They had to put up a screen in an adjoining chapel for the 200 that didn't fit into the church. The family collected money that people could give instead of flowers to go toward work with children in Afghanistan. Apparently this soldier had been instrumental in starting a soccer team for kids in the village near where they were stationed. And thus his work is continued in his memory.