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July 05, 2004

Independence Day Redux

When my son was in Iraq last year, he called me on July 3rd (it was the 4th in Iraq) to wish me a happy Independence Day. After months of MREs, the Navy cooks barbecued hamburgers and hot dogs, and served cold soft drinks. Standard picnic fare back here but a real treat for our troops. It was a tough day to be apart from him - we had spent the last 11 years of 4th of July weekends at the World Championship Timber Carnival in Albany, OR where he competed in the log rolling competitions and I volunteered from dawn to dusk, tallying scores and patiently answering the same questions over and over. It was a great way to spend a very American holiday.

Times change. The Timber Carnival has now morphed into an all-sports competition and my son is a United States Marine. When I asked him last year if he missed being at home, doing fireworks with his friends, he said that while it would be fun, he was satisfied to be in Iraq helping to keep our country safe so that the rest of us could enjoy a carefree holiday.

This year, he's here for the 4th. He called me from somewhere in Nevada yesterday - he and his wife were headed to a lake where some of his Marine brothers were camped. They didn't have a tent but they had each other and that was all that mattered. Shane thought they'd just sleep under the stars (his wife was less thrilled about that) since they are saving their money for a trip home later this month before he deploys in August. He's no less committed than he was last year. And this year, he has even more reason to defend and protect. Thank you to my son and all the other sons, daughters, husbands, and wives who have left the comfort of home to serve our country. It's not a small thing.

Posted by Deb at July 5, 2004 10:18 AM