Huish Herd

Such a bittersweet day this has been.  Rob's National Guard Unit had it's Send Off Ceremony.  They will be leaving in the wee hours of the morning for two months and then hopefully will come home for 4 days before heading for the Middle East.

We are proud that he loves this great nation but it does break a mother's heart to see the baby she once cuddled in her arms being trained the way a soldier has to be and then to watch him go for such a long time to such an uncertain situation.

I grew up with my mom telling me how bitterly her mother wept the day after my Uncle John (her brother) graduated from high school.  He and several friends went and signed up for the draft during WWII.  Grandma Annie hated to see someone with such a soft heart to go into that.  I kind of understand how Grandma felt, even though I have had more time to get used to the idea.  Not sure yet if that has made it harder or easier.

My mind has wandered back to the day that the first planes took off for Desert Storm.  As Mariah and I drove back to Holbrook from Snow Flake, my heart ached so badly I could hardly drive and try to answer my young daughter's questions.  How do you tell such a little girl that you are afraid that her little brother may end up on the other side of the world . . . not on a vacation.

Now, after 22 years, my fears are being realized.  My son will be leaving to go into, only Heaven knows what.

Am I ranting, yes.  As much as I have been grousing, I have held so much in and my poor husband has carried so much and held it in so well.  Sleep has become a stranger in our home.  Headaches, worry, heart burn, stomach aches and short tempers have become almost constant companions.  But at the same time, I have found that Jon & I can still be each others' leaning posts.  We can still go to our loving Heavenly Father who understands how we feel, our fears and anxieties.  We can still join in prayer and call on our elder brother, Jesus.  We can draw on a life time of faith and trust to watch over our son and place our troubles and worries on His shoulders as we try to be there for all of our children and their children.   As we open our hearts to each other to draw close, to care for the eternal promise that we made to each other and God almost 35 years ago, life is still good.  The world can not take that from us without our permission.

I am blessed.