I dated a sweet boy in college that was in the Army reserves. He had joined to get money for college, and was considering a full time enlistment after graduation. It didn't require a whole lot - one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer.
This was 1991, and things soon changed. The Gulf War started, and my boyfriend's regiment went on standby. This was before cell phones, so his mom or dad had to know where he was at all times, so he could be quickly located. It was hard. We'd watch the war on television at night, trying to comprehend that the Atari-like green streaks across the screen were real, and not some video game. Real people were dying and it was a real war.
His nerves were on edge, and the prospect of going to war loomed on the horizon like a huge storm. I was a mess, and being young and sheltered didn't help the situation any. I just didn't know how to feel or act. I'm sure I didn't help his nerves any!
The war ended, just as his troop was the next up to go. It didn't escape us that he came close to going. Very close.
It was then that I decided that a life with a military man was not something I could do. He did end up joining the military full time and lived in Germany for awhile. I always prayed for him, and it made me much more aware of what those boys and girls go through.
Then I met Jackie. She is the embodiment of all military wives. She's done it all on her own. I watched her be the husband and the wife for the long, long time that Will was in Afghanistan, and for all the times he was in Egypt or on a training mission or on drill . I couldn't believe her strength and her fortitude. There were nights with sick kids, decisions to be made, financial issues to be dealt with, house situations to be remedied and all with no help or input from the person closest to her. I was so amazed at how well she handled it all, and knew full well I'd not do near as good a job that she did. There was no husband walking in the door at night, or on the weekends. He was gone for months and months and months. The adjustment when he came home was a hard one too, for them all.
What blew my mind the most was how many wives and husbands are doing this every day. There are men who are serving their THIRD tour of Iraq. 18 months tours. I cannot fathom how those wives and mothers do it.
There are currently 2,475,967 members of the military today. Can you imagine how many families have members serving in some way right now? I can't even wrap my mind around that number.
There is a little girl in Zane's class in church that I met last week named Grace. Grace has had two open heart surgeries and will have one more for a congenital heart defect. She's on oxygen constantly and has a feeding tube. After playing with her and learning about her situation, my heart just went out to her and her mom. Then Ms. Martha, Zane's teacher, mentioned that her Daddy is on a tour. I almost cried. I don't know much about their situation, but I do not know how that sweet Mama does it with her husband so far away.
I've thought a lot about those families today, and about my own great-grandfather, Alexander, who served in WWII and was a prisoner of war. I've thought about my great-grandmother who went to work at Stockholm to work in the factory to make money to support her 4 kids all the while not knowing if her husband was dead or alive.
The sacrifices that these men, women and their families make is so huge and far surpasses my ability to find words to describe them. I am so in debt to these people, from long ago and those today. I have tried to honor them today by thanking the Lord for them. It seems like such a small thing to do for the enormous sacrifice they make.
This was 1991, and things soon changed. The Gulf War started, and my boyfriend's regiment went on standby. This was before cell phones, so his mom or dad had to know where he was at all times, so he could be quickly located. It was hard. We'd watch the war on television at night, trying to comprehend that the Atari-like green streaks across the screen were real, and not some video game. Real people were dying and it was a real war.
His nerves were on edge, and the prospect of going to war loomed on the horizon like a huge storm. I was a mess, and being young and sheltered didn't help the situation any. I just didn't know how to feel or act. I'm sure I didn't help his nerves any!
The war ended, just as his troop was the next up to go. It didn't escape us that he came close to going. Very close.
It was then that I decided that a life with a military man was not something I could do. He did end up joining the military full time and lived in Germany for awhile. I always prayed for him, and it made me much more aware of what those boys and girls go through.
Then I met Jackie. She is the embodiment of all military wives. She's done it all on her own. I watched her be the husband and the wife for the long, long time that Will was in Afghanistan, and for all the times he was in Egypt or on a training mission or on drill . I couldn't believe her strength and her fortitude. There were nights with sick kids, decisions to be made, financial issues to be dealt with, house situations to be remedied and all with no help or input from the person closest to her. I was so amazed at how well she handled it all, and knew full well I'd not do near as good a job that she did. There was no husband walking in the door at night, or on the weekends. He was gone for months and months and months. The adjustment when he came home was a hard one too, for them all.
What blew my mind the most was how many wives and husbands are doing this every day. There are men who are serving their THIRD tour of Iraq. 18 months tours. I cannot fathom how those wives and mothers do it.
There are currently 2,475,967 members of the military today. Can you imagine how many families have members serving in some way right now? I can't even wrap my mind around that number.
There is a little girl in Zane's class in church that I met last week named Grace. Grace has had two open heart surgeries and will have one more for a congenital heart defect. She's on oxygen constantly and has a feeding tube. After playing with her and learning about her situation, my heart just went out to her and her mom. Then Ms. Martha, Zane's teacher, mentioned that her Daddy is on a tour. I almost cried. I don't know much about their situation, but I do not know how that sweet Mama does it with her husband so far away.
I've thought a lot about those families today, and about my own great-grandfather, Alexander, who served in WWII and was a prisoner of war. I've thought about my great-grandmother who went to work at Stockholm to work in the factory to make money to support her 4 kids all the while not knowing if her husband was dead or alive.
The sacrifices that these men, women and their families make is so huge and far surpasses my ability to find words to describe them. I am so in debt to these people, from long ago and those today. I have tried to honor them today by thanking the Lord for them. It seems like such a small thing to do for the enormous sacrifice they make.
