Heroes

The other night, I was over at the Boise International Airport to pick up Ray and Lenea on their return trip from Indiana. I had Trey with me and as we sat in the waiting lobby I noticed other people in the seating area grasping brightly colored balloons, mostly red and blue, a few white, while several others were holding American flags. I figured it out as a little girl walked by me with a picture of a Marine on the back of her shirt and underneath the words, "My hero, My Daddy". These families were waiting for the arrival of their sons, their daughters, their husbands and wives, daddys and mommys.

All of a sudden, my world slowed down, and I begin to tune into the conversations going on around me. I heard two military wives discussing what is was going to be like to have their husbands home. One was remarking that her boy was a year and a half when his daddy left for Iraq and his only concept of a father was a photograph in the living room. She said the little guy often touches the picture, "trying to feel what his father is like". The other mom remarked that her 5 year-old was almost 3 when his father left for service. As I listened to the women talked, the little boy kept interrupting, asking "Is Daddy going to have the same brown shirt and pants he had on when he left?" As I looked around the room, I began to feel the excitement that was in the air, the anticipation expressed on the faces around me. Their loved ones were coming home!

I looked down at Trey and as he looked up at me had one of those sentimental "what-if" moments. What if I was called to serve my country? What if I had to be separated from this little guy who I love with everything in me? What if I wasn't able to see my family for months, years at a time?

All of a sudden I was struck by the sacrifice of these men and women who willingly serve our country all over the world. I'm sure they don't want to be away from their families any more than I would want to be separated from mine. But they do it because they believe in what the US represents. They do it to bring a better life to others around the globe.

If you're like me, you are sick of hearing all of the arguements about what's going on in Iraq. Whether we should be there or not, whether or not we should have gone in the first place. It's been negativity overload recently as both sides fire potshots at the other. All the while, over on the other side of the world far away from the political posturing, the protests, the soundbites, men and women perform their duties (many times in harm's way) to ensure that we are safe and free.

I'm grateful. I'm indebted to the men and women that walked into the airport Monday night. I'm not a crying type of guy, but I felt my eyes getting a little misty as I witnessed the hugs, the laughter, and the kisses. The kids screaming joyously, running toward daddy, while the little children hid shyly behind mommy trying to figure out who this guy was. The Moms and Dads, many with tears running down their face, welcoming their kids home. It all painted a picture that I won't be forgetting this Thanksgiving. It doesn't get much better than this.

Thanks! May God bless and protect our servicemen and servicewomen wherever they may be. You and your families, you guys are my heroes. You also reminded me to be thankful for every moment I have with the family God has blessed me with.