Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Thank YOU!

Thank you all for your support of my family during the deployments of our three soldiers! Without all of you "being there," this would have been a much harder journey to endure.

Both of my boys returned from their experiences much humbler men: stronger physically, softer emotionally. They see life differently now than they did before they "saw life lived differently." Austin taught himself to play the guitar while he was in transition. This evening we sat together while he played for me. He's really quite good. Kris and Katie ride their bikes to school, they host tailgate parties before K-State games, no more uniforms.

Soon we'll have another member of our family. And with the birth of our first grandchild comes a whole new set of fears. I think, though, that living through five deployments and having come through in the best of circumstances has taught me a lot about worry. How much more could I have enjoyed life over the past seven years if I had chosen not to worry. How much better a supporter of our soldiers could I have been if I had not been incapacitated with fear? Can a mother chose not to worry in such circumstances? Maybe. Maybe not.

Smiling again is fun! To really, really feel free to laugh and be happy is great. No more black clouds following me around. Yeah! Life is definitely good!