Now It's Personal

Do you remember where you were that morning?  I do, like it was yesterday.  I was at BYU visiting old roommates.  I had crawled from the couch into my roomies bed after she left for an early morning jog.  She came in about 8:15am saying she was just sick because an airplane had just hit one of the World Trade Towers.

I pulled myself out of bed and never left the TV until later that evening.  It was all so surreal.  I had been in those towers.  I had been on the observation deck.  I had visited that city many times while growing up in New Jersey.

My dad was flying that day.  Was it one of his planes?  At the time he was flying 727's and someone on TV said they thought it was that type of an airplane.

Luckily my dad wasn't on one of those planes.  I talked to an old high school friend shortly after and he said he had thought of my dad and how he knew my dad would have fought those guys to the end.  I'm sure every pilot on those planes did just that.

Reflecting back 10 years I'm not sure really what to think about what has come of it all.  I consider myself a conservative, country loving, God fearing woman.  I believe the US has done many good things around the world.  But just like a mother of any child should never think her baby can do no wrong, I know our country has done things to really tick people off. 

Should we have gone into Iraq?  I honestly don't know.  From everything I've seen, no.  I get that Saddam Hussein was a vicious and cruel dictator.  But I also get that there are many vicious and cruel dictators out there that we as a country condemn but essentially leave alone.  Too bad the ''Arab Spring" did not come a decade earlier. 

I have much more allegiance to the fights in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  They are known to house the very men who did this to our country.  I often liken Al Qaeda unto the Gadianton Robbers.  All effort needs to be made to eradicate them from society.  Their allegiance is not to God.  God would never ask them to do what they are doing.

Until a few weeks ago I have never known anyone personally who's gone over to wage in this conflict.  My brother-in-law is the lucky winner of a "free" trip.  He'll be gone for 6 months and leaves behind a wife and 5 beautiful kids.  Lucky for him he's a radiologist and will most likely be in a heavily fortified hospital somewhere in the desert.  But he is going to war and with that there are no guarantees.

While there are still many unanswered questions for me there are a few things I'm certain of.  I'm proud of our soldiers who go and fight a war I'm not sure will ever fully be won.  I'm proud of the country they represent.  I'm humbled by their willingness to give the ultimate sacrifice.  I'm proud our family has someone to represent us there.  And I'm glad it's become much more personal.

The only picture I could find of who I affectionately call "Grumpy Doug"

We love you and we will pray for you everyday while you're gone.

Be safe and come home soon!

(Picture taken at one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen while on our trip to Costa Rica this summer)