Christmas is a holiday tradition, and most people have an idea of how it ought to be — or at least, how they enjoy celebrating it. Some like tearing down the stairs in the morning, ripping open presents, and enjoying a time of giving among family members. Others see it as a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, a religious time of warmth and reflection. Many find friends and just have a good time together. Others must work to keep the world turning while everyone else enjoys their holiday.

And some are at war, deployed far away from home and far from their families and friends. Despite their difficult circumstances, many make the best of it — even bringing some Christmas spirit along with them to these war-torn places.

I’ve never been a very sentimental person when it comes to holidays, but I remember my first Christmas in Afghanistan. It wasn’t a dramatic realization that I was away during Christmas (I missed my family as much as I did any other day), but I would be lying if I didn’t feel a tug of longing to celebrate the holiday with my family.

Still, like we always did, my friends and I did the best with what we had.

And while our own young men and women are doing this right now in far away places, this has been the case for a very long time. I compiled a few pictures from various wars depicting service members from various nations celebrating Christmas during some of the wars of the last century.

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