He said good-bye to the kids today....

It was a rough day for Sgt. "I". He came by with his new uniforms for the mother-figure to sew patches onto....and to say good-bye to the younger six. He seemed pretty antsy. Wanting to stay..needing to go. His wife and mom were sitting in the kitchen chatting, unaware that he had started the process in the family room of going to each child to say good-bye and get a hug and a kiss, if the child wasn't too "manly" for such a thing.

It was just one more step in the leaving process. The little ones didn't seem to quite understand. The first grader looked shocked when I told him he'd be a second grader when "I" gets back. Sort of, you're kidding, right? Not see my big brother for THAT long?

"K", 7, picks things up far too easily. She seemed to understand all too well that the place this brother is going is not a safe one. We'll need to keep the tv news turned off this year.

The next 4 boys played their manly, soldier roles well. Quick hug. See ya. Take care.

So. This is real. It's happening.

I wish I could talk to MY mom......