An Emotional Week

This has been a week full of a lot of tension.  Our oldest son leaves for boot camp in just 10 days!  I’m sure you can imagine the emotion that is being felt by everyone in the house.  I’m very proud of my son for his desire to serve our country, but as a mother, I am also very worried.  Both my husband and I enlisted when our country was in a time of peace. That changed within 7 months.
Will the same thing happen to my son? Ok, let's be honest..this is my baby.  My husband is also feeling on edge and I am sure he thinks about how war has changed his life, what he has lost, and how things will forever be different. No parent wants that for their child.  My other son is feeling a huge loss- his only brother is leaving- his best friend and the one guy he has to help him through life.  Then there are my three daughters who have never experienced having to say goodbye so they don’t quite understand what is happening.  I fear that on Monday the 22nd, I will be saying goodbye to my son not knowing who I will get when he returns home. 
Stress is never good for a wounded warrior family. My husband does not do well during these times.  There is more arguing, more withdrawing, more of the bad guy coming out.  My kids then suffer. I try to do everything in my power to give them reasons to smile but they feel the tension.  It’s really hard having to suck up everything I’m feeling to take care of everyone else.  This is one of the reasons I love working in The Heroes Thanking Heroes Program. It allows me time every day to “escape” to my own world.  So until the 22nd, I will just plan my son's going away party while trying to hold together the world for the rest of my family.