Often I read long form pieces and the signal/noise ratio is so low it feels like someone was blessed with a short point to get across but burdened with a large word budget.

This is one of those rare exceptions; when I reached the end, I found within myself an unexpected feeling of grief—mildly, for the end of a piece that managed to convey such a rich sense of place, and deeply, for the pain our senseless wars inflict on the innocent.