When I think of the OP Mest my senses become a little uneasy. I imagine scenes from Zero Dark Thirty with baron land, shrivels of brown and sundried vegetation, mountains that don’t seem to flow in that quiet picturesque way. It’s a war zone. It is dirty. It’s a place people aren’t happy, and are constantly uncertain of tomorrow’s outcome.

With this in mind, it is no surprise Bowe Bergdahl walked away from his platoon that night in June 2009, but it wasn’t just the unfamiliar place driving his fleet. To Bowe, there was lack of effective leadership in his unit. He wanted to draw attention to this by disappearing…and then returning, therefore proving that the ranks above him were incapable of keeping those they lead safe. He wanted to be heard, and so he was going to draw attention to himself so that he could talk to someone that would listen.

Bowe had good intentions in his plan, but I can’t fathom why someone would wander off into Afghanistan alone. In the 52-second fly over video from Bowe’s return, even I lost sight of what I was watching. The “moon dust” and hills rolled together, the sky smoggy, as if even the clouds were confused where they were. So, it is pretty easy to say this plan was unrealistic. Though this should lead us to question further what gave him the courage to do so. From my perspective, my shortage of athleticism and inability to read a compass wouldn’t lead me to walk off of a military sight, or walk on for that matter.

The only way I could see myself persisting through the OP Mest, and the war in Afghanistan at large, would be the comfort of camaraderie with fellow soldiers. For Bowe, however, this is exactly what was lacking. I understand Bergdahl had to be miserable as a private in the army. “No one knows who he really is, or why he did it,” as stated in Serial 2. But, in addition to this, what would help me understand Bowe’s reasoning a little better would be insight into his background. Why did he go into the army? What did he do there?  Was he a “good soldier”? What exactly is a good solider? Who is Bowe Bergdahl?