AUBURN  — A year ago Paul Bosse left behind his wife and two Labs to lead 150 troops on the dangerous Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

He came back a new father and a grateful husband, and he came back safe.

Bosse is captain of the Maine Army National Guard Bravo Company, 3rd Battalion, 172nd Infantry. His soldiers started arriving home in waves a month ago. He made it to Auburn, to his wife, Loriann, and 5-month-old daughter Caroline on Dec. 10.

Bosse had been in charge of four rural districts in eastern Afghanistan. On Mondays, he’d meet with elders in one district, Dand Wa Patan, to talk security and projects, knowing that some in the room were Taliban — men who fluidly switched sides, were sympathetic to the cause or were waiting to see who came out ahead.

“My combat outpost was 400 meters from Pakistan,” about as close is it got, he said. There were numerous firefights. His soldiers didn’t suffer any losses, but there were injuries.

“We did some things right,” Bosse said. “As a person of faith, it’s mostly the grace of God. We could have easily lost seven or eight.”

He got behind projects like new school playgrounds and mentored Afghan police.

The couple kept in touch with phone calls about once a week. Some men tried to talk to their wives every day. “I can’t do that, it’s too distracting,” Bosse, 37, said.

“If you hear from them a lot, too, the time goes slower,” Loriann, 31, added.

She kept busy planning for the baby and got lots of help from family after Caroline’s arrival. This fall, they decided to test the market and put their home up for sale. It sold in 12 days. Paul checked real estate listings from Afghanistan, telling his wife he might have found their dream house less than a mile away. More space, more land, a garage.

Loriann made an offer, bought the house and started packing. They move after the holidays.

“Loriann is just good that way,” Bosse said. “Loriann manages our money, manages our home, as I play army.”

She said this deployment, her husband’s second, was easier because of the baby.

“Last time you weren’t in gunfights and all that,” she said as the two sat recently in their kitchen. “Caroline was a good diversion … It’s like she knew she had to be good because Daddy was gone.”

Bosse will resume his full-time job with the Guard at the end of January, commuting up to Bangor.

“I felt fulfilled with this deployment,” he said. “I pretty much told Loriann I wouldn’t volunteer for any (more).”

Fatherhood, Bosse said, has been amazing. He’ll catch himself making silly faces, silly sounds. He plans to teach Caroline to fly fish someday.

“I feel lucky,” he said. “I’m still Paul.”

kskelton@sunjournal.com

Editor’s note: Today we offer Part 2 of our look back at some of 2010’s most interesting stories covered in the Sun Journal and what has happened since.