Finding Comfort

As I sit here drinking my morning coffee, I am reflecting on the events of the past year. In the past year I have lost a mother, brother, family friend, a beloved family pet and sent my only son into a war zone. I have had a heart attack, had a stent put in place while struggling daily with lupus, fibromyalgia and RA. Some days I wake up thinking "what's next?" and then I have to get myself in check and be grateful for the good things I have in my life. I know God never gives us more than we can handle. As you all know I lost my Glory girl day before yesterday but I have to tell you what almost happened on that same day. I got a message from my son saying "I almost died today"! My heart almost stopped when I read those words. I immediately responded, "OMG are you ok? What happened if you can tell me"? You always think the worse from a war zone, "did he get bombed?" "was it an IED?" "did he take small arms fire?" but this was not the case. He says. "while walking to work the driver of a humvee came hauling ass out of the motor pool and almost hit 4 of us walking on side the road. I had to pull one of my soldiers with me while jumping out of the way"! He said, " you are always on your toes because of where you are and had we not been "on guard" we would all be dead or seriously hurt". I asked if they were walking on the road and he said no they were on the side of the road on base. I am sure there is more than what he is saying being he mentioned it. But he felt he needed to tell me so I am not taking it lightly. I am not laying blame on anyone because that will be taken care of in Iraq. My point is that although I lost my pet it could have been so much worse. I believe things happen for a reason and even though I lost a family pet, my son's life was spared and that is a gift from from a higher power. He has a dangerous job and has had many close calls and I am sure he does not tell me everything. So while I grieve the loss of a pet, God blessed me by sparing the life of my child. It's easy to get on a pitty party because it seems easier to focus on the negative. But if we take time to find the positive things it our lives all to often the good out weighs the bad. I read blogs and realize how fortunate I am for having a love and support of a caring family. I am blessed with a son who has morals and values, who is willing to fight for what is right. I am blessed with a wonderful husband who is a cancer survivor of 12 yrs. I am blessed to have had a mother who taught me the importance of family values but yet could still be my best friend. Although I have lost both of my parents I am so grateful for the way they raised me and the lessons they taught that I was able to pass on to my child. Some days are so much harder than other that I will admit but then I will read a comment on twitter and it will bring me comfort when I didn't realize that was what I needed. I am blessed by my online family who all to often do not know the comfort they bring by their tweets or emails.

It's OK Not To Be OK!

Sorry but I am having one of those days. I am sorry that I can't say it's OK! I am sorry that I can't be strong today and you know what, that's OK! It's NOT OK that, due to the beliefs of some that I cannot send my son, my soldier a food that he is craving because of some's religious belief's. It's NOT OK that these same people step all over my religious belief's, starting with "thou shalt not kill" like the Sept 11th terrorist attacks on innocent people! It's NOT OK that these people come to my country and step all over American's and our belief's, yet we have to accept theirs in our own country and in theirs! It's NOT OK that this is their belief's not mine but yet I still have to abide by it. It's NOT OK that I am supposed to respect their Koran, yet they don't have to respect my Holy Bible! It's NOT OK for them to celebrate U.S. Troop withdrawl yelling "We Won, We Won" when our troops did the work. It's NOT OK for them to want the US Troops gone yet still want my tax dollars to rebuild their ecomony. IT's NOT OK that MSM is not honoring our fallen as it should, yet you know who is still making headlines. (Sorry I refuse to say his name aloud due to the fact he has had enough publicity!) It's NOT OK for anyone to disgrace my flag in the name of freedom of expression! It's NOT OK that our veterans are not getting the health care that they have earned. It's NOT OK that there are homeless veterans while those on welfare, who did nothing for this country get a free ride! So, NO I am NOT OK and that is OK!

Feelings of the Mom of a Deployed Soldier!

I am not really sure that I can put the feelings into words. Being over-whelmed with emotions of fear, anxiety, stress and pride are just a few of the emotions that you experience for months prior to the deployment date. The fear of the unknown has always been my biggest fear. A different type of anxiety and stress are now a regular part of your daily life. It's not something you have any control over but you somehow have to learn to live with. The pride I feel for what he is doing makes my heart swell and my eyes tear. You learn to live in faith and prayer becomes your second language. Some days you pray more than others but your faith never waivers. You find yourself praying while doing your chores, you realize you just missed half the movie you were watching or you can't remember what you just read because you started thinking about your child and immediately start praying for his safety and for his brothers in arms. It seems like the only thing that can hold your concentration is your soldier. I have written before of how I get angry over comments or remarks made about our troops but then I have to get myself in check and remember that one of the reasons our troops do what they do is so we can have freedom of speech even though we don't always like what some people have to say. When your soldier is deployed you are never far away from the phone or the internet because you don't want to miss any opportunity to hear from him. You go into panic mode when you hear of bombing in the area where your soldier is. Once you finally hear from your soldier you breath a sign of relief and you hold on to every word. You find yourself scouring the internet hoping for just a glimpse of your soldier. Sleep is not something that comes easily. I think the best rest I have had since January was the 2 weeks he was home on R&R. You become very friendly with your post master because you are in there more than ever before. Holidays aren't the same. It doesn't matter how many care packages you send or what the contents are you never feel like you are doing enough. Being the mother (parent) of a Soldier is a like being on an emotional roller coaster ride. Proud to be a Soldiers Mom!

Here we go again.

I am sitting here stewing over the missing media coverage. With the elections approaching in Aghanistan, our troops fighting the taliban, our fallen warriors in Afghanistan and Iraq and the bombings this morning in Iraq you would think that the MSM would give more than 2 minutes of news coverage. I am not taking anything away from those reporters who try so hard to report on the War On Terror. We American's are strong and we can handle the truth. Why is it that controversy dominates the airways? Why is it that "Cash for Clunkers" makes the headlines everyday? Doesn't our fallen deserve to be honored and mentioned in the MSM? Doesn't our brave men and woman deserve to be recognized for the great jobs they are doing? However, if a soldier suffers from PTSD, the media is all to happy to report the negative side of that. If a Soldier breaks the law MSM is all to willing to report that also. The MSM is so willing to report the negative side of our military instead of reporting all the positive things about our military. What is it going to take for the MSM to report the news and not government programs?

The Sack Lunches

This was sent to me by a very good friend of mine and I wanted to share it with you. Sometimes its the little things that make the biggest impact.

The Sack Lunches

I put my carry-on in the luggage

Compartment and sat down in my

Assigned seat. It was going to be a

Long flight..

'I'm glad I have a

Good book to read. Perhaps I will get

A short nap,' I thought.

Just before take-off, a line of Soldiers came down the aisle and Filled all the vacant seats, totally Surrounding me. I decided to Start a conversation. 'Where are you headed? ' I asked the soldier seated nearest to me.

'Petawawa. We'll be there for two Weeks for special training, and then We're being deployed to Afghanistan

After flying for about an hour, an Announcement was made that sack Lunches were available for five Dollars. It would be several hours Before we reached the east, and I Quickly decided a lunch would help Pass the time..

As I reached for my wallet, I Overheard soldier ask his buddy if he Planned to buy lunch. 'No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably Wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we get to base '

His friend agreed.

I looked around at the other Soldiers. None were buying lunch. I Walked to the back of the plane and Handed the flight attendant a Fifty dollar bill. 'Take a lunch to all those soldiers.' She grabbed my arms and squeezed Tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me. 'My son was a Soldier in Iraq ; it's almost like you are doing it for him.'

Picking up ten sacks, she headed up The aisle to where the soldiers Were seated. She stopped at my seat And asked, 'Which do you likeBest - beef or chicken?'

'Chicken,' I replied, wondering why She asked. She turned and went to The front of plane, returning a Minute later with a dinner plate from First class. 'This is your thanks.'

After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane, Heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. 'I saw what you did. I want to be part of it. Here, take this.' He handed me twenty-five dollars.

Soon after I returned to my seat, I Saw the Flight Captain coming down The aisle, looking at the aisle Numbers as he walked, I hoped he was Not looking for me, but noticed he Was looking at the numbers only on My side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, 'I want to shake your hand.'

Quickly unfastening my seatbelt I Stood and took the Captain's hand. With a booming voice he said, 'I was A soldier and I was a military Pilot. Once, someone bought me a Lunch. It was an act of kindness I Never forgot.' I was embarrassed When applause was heard from all of The passengers.

Later I walked to the front of the Plane so I could stretch my legs. A man who was seated about six rows In front of me reached out his Hand, wanting to shake mine. He left Another twenty-five dollars in my palm..

When we landed I gathered my Belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door Was a man who stopped me, put Something in my shirt pocket, turned, And walked away without saying a Word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the Soldiers gathering for their trip to the base. I walked over to them And handed them seventy-five dollars. 'It will take you some time to Reach the base. It will be about time for a sandwich. God Bless You.'

Ten young men left that flight Feeling the love and respect of their Fellow travelers. As I walked Briskly to my car, I whispered a prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all for our country. I could only Give them a couple of meals.

It seemed so little...

A veteran is someone who, at one Point in his life, wrote a blank check Made payable to 'The United States of America ' for an amount of 'up to and including My life.'

That is Honor, and there are way too Many people in this country who No longer understand it.'

May God give you the strength and Courage to pass this along to everyone on your email buddy list....... I JUST DID

What #militarymon Means to Me

To me #militarymon is not about one person or one branch of the Armed Forces. It is not about one blog, who tweets or who retweets the most. It is so much bigger than that. #MilitaryMon is about Supporting Our Troops in every aspect, from those who work behind the scenes to the ones who are engaged it the War on Terror. It is about bringing awareness to Support our Troops and the sacrifices that they make to ensure our freedom. It is about saying "Thank You" to our Veterans. It is about showing respect to the families of our Armed Forces and thanking them for their sacrifices as well. During #militarymon people from all walks of life, with different political views, different religious views as well as different personal views and social status all come together for one goal and that is to show their support. It is about supporting our Allies who walk side by side with the U.S. Armed Forces. It's about bringing awareness to all the Organizations and the hard work they do for Our Armed Forcecs. It's about Soldiers (past and present) sharing their stories with us. It is about ideas for care packages, letters and needs that need to be met. It is about bringing awareness of what our Troops do besides fighting on the battle field. #MilitaryMon is about showing the strength and the hearts of our brave men and women in all branches of the military. #Militarymon gives our Soldiers the recognition that is denied to them by the media. It is about Honoring our Fallen Warriors and never forgetting their sacrifice. My life has been blessed by the people I have met thanks to #militarymon.

Stop and think!

While engaged in a conversation at the grocery store a few days ago my converstion was interrupted by an un-welcomed comment. This person and myself were discussing how hot it was outside and we really hated complaining about it because our troops had it so much worse than we could even imagine when this kid probably 18 or 19 years old, interrupts and says, "its not as bad for them because they don't have to deal with the humidity". Needless to say this did not sit well at all with me or the other person I was talking to. If this kid in his white shirt, jeans and tennis shoes, who pushes a grocery cart, who is in the heat no longer than 5 minutes before going back into an air-conditioned store is going to say something as stupid as that deserves my wrath. After I thanked this kid for interruping my conversation I asked this him to explained to me how dealing with the clothing, boots, body armor, 80lb back pack, carrying a weapon walking miles in the desert while looking for terrorist, is not that bad? He gives me this dumb look like what do you mean? So I had to put it in simple terms for him. Humidity or no humidity this is what our troops do everyday. They can't just sit down because they get hot or because they are tired. They have to keep on keeping on. They don't have a grocery cart to carry their necessities, their backs are their grocery carts. Again he says, but they don't have the humity. Ok, by this time I am "hot" and it had nothing to do with the heat or the humidity. I asked him if he was really that stupid or was he just in denial. I told him if it wasn't that bad and if he was so concerned about the humidity then maybe he should join one the branches of the Armed Forces and go where there was no humidity. I quickly recanted that statement. The manager came and we went into his office where the conversation continued for a bit longer. Needless to say the manager apologized for the kids interruption and stupid remark. It's really sad that we get so caught up in our everyday lives that we don't stop and think what our troops endure everyday to assure that we can go on with our lives without being in fear. We can get in our cars and go to the grocery store and not fear that some terrorist is gonna put a bomb in front of the store where we are shopping. To often we forget how lucky we are to be American's. Thanks to our troops I was able to use my freedom of speech to defend those who gave me that right. I decided that I would push my own cart out because I didn't want this kid to get over heated because of the heat and humidity.