As the war in Iran continues, I just wanted to take a moment to thank the people that have reached out to my wife and me this past week.
First of all, I’m not going to get political here. Mainly because THEY are not allowed to get political. And as a very wise man I follow on Facebook said this week: “We’re there. We’re in it. I fully support our men and women in uniform.”
Out of the blue last Sunday we started to hear from friends, some we hadn’t heard from in quite some time, that were thinking of our son, daughter-in-law and son-in-law who are on active duty in the Navy.
My son-in-law continues to work with young pilots in Corpus Christi, TX. My daughter-in-law is on shore duty in Virginia Beach. As for my son Doug…
Doug is currently scheduled to be deployed in early April. We don’t know exactly where he is going. We’re not allowed to know. But… we have a pretty good idea.
On top of that, all three of them have friends that are currently in the thick of it so we have been busy already with our thoughts and prayers.
My son may actually not be heading out if he gets a new assignment he is up for but there is no guarantee of that happening and he is scheduled to deploy in just a matter of weeks.
Friends have asked, “Are you worried?”
Obviously we are but then I worry about all my children and their spouses. But, yes, there is a different level of concern. He’s been in war zones before and it never gets easier. We can only pray and trust in his training.
The flight deck of an aircraft carrier is one of the most dangerous work environments in the world. There are many moving parts… like fighter jets! Then there’s jet blasts and a rolling deck depending on the weather. They also sometimes fly round-the-clock meaning many hours are in the dark and, depending on the situation, they may have limited lighting up there. I have the utmost respect for anyone who has or still does work in that environment.
It’s a different kind of life that they sign up for. I have talked to many of their friends who have been deployed numerous times in war zones with Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s not an easy life on them or the family and loved ones they leave behind.
We email when we can but always try to keep it light and we never discuss what they’re doing or what we’re seeing in the news. All email is monitored so we never want to put them in a difficult position. While the ship was doing workups I basically told him about the blizzard and what all the cousins were up to. We talk about sports and soon the Red Sox will do something we can complain about. They nicknamed him “Boston” on one of his ships once.
They work seven days a week while at sea. I asked him once why they didn’t get any days off and he was quick to say, “What am I going to do? It’s not like I can go for a drive. Might as well work.”
My wife and I are flying down to Virginia next weekend to see him, my daughter-in-law and granddaughter before he ships out. We’ll hang out, tell stories and laugh.
Not gonna lie: I may hang on to that goodbye hug just a little longer this time and squeeze a little harder.
Godspeed son. Be safe.
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