Memorial Day

Three years ago Memorial Day for us changed in meaning. Before we moved to Germany, Memorial Day was just a day off, a 3 day weekend that welcomed in the summer. Over past Memorial Days I have headed to the beach in Florida, or to the lake in TN, without much thought as to the meaning behind the day.

Once we arrived in Germany and began to experience a little of Army life, Memorial Day took on a whole new meaning. Memorial Day is a day to remember those who have given their lives for my freedom.

It is a difficult choice to remain in the Army. Even for those who make it to Iraq and back there are so many sacrifices that are made by the soldiers and their families. We saw many of these sacrifices first hand as we walked through the deployment of the 92nd MPs to Afghanistan and then the 1st Armored Division to Iraq.

My friend Cindy and I were prego together and our babies were due just days apart. We drove together to a weekend birthing class in Ramstein. Every other person in the class had their husband present. Cindy ended up driving herself to the hospital while she was in labor. Mark was actually on his way to Germany for some R&R, but missed the birth by 24 hours.

One gal I worked with, her father-in-law died while her husband was in Iraq. He was able to make it home for the funeral, but never was able to say goodbye to his dad in person.

One of the first chaplains we had in Baumholder was extended in Iraq and missed his son's college graduation, his commissioning as an officer and his wedding.

This is just part of life for military families. Some women are bitter about their situations, but many of the women that I met understood what life was like in the Army community. They are proud of what their husbands do and make life work at home while they are away. Honestly I think that it is one of the toughest jobs out there.

Going through the last deployment with Baumholder was tough on us. All of a sudden we went from not knowing anyone in Iraq, to knowing a ton of people in Iraq. And we didn't just know the soldiers, we knew their wives and kids. Honestly, I don't think that I have ever prayed every day for anything in my life...but Dave and I prayed every day for those guys. It was actually a really sweet thing for us. We felt that we could take an active role, instead of just watching the news...

One year ago today I received the phone call that I never wanted to receive. We had just returned home from our vacation to Italy, and I was super exhausted after spending 13 hours in the car driving home with Hadleigh who was only 2 months old. It was super late, but when Dave checked the messages on our phone he told me that I had to call Sara right away. I felt sick.

When I got her on the phone she told me that Nic's husband had been killed. Nic wasn't a good friend, in fact I think that we had only spoken to Doug on one occasion. Nic was in my group of friends. We had a rotating girls night that got together once a month and she also attended our Chapel service. Oddly enough there was another connection with Nic. Dave and Nic attended the same high school and Dave's sister Angie and Nic were good friends.

After Doug's death my friend Jess had a dream where she pictured the Lord making wine out of the water from Nic's tears. I think that is a beautiful picture of what the Lord does with our sorrows, one day there will be joy in the morning. And if you are a wine lover, like Nic, having the LOrd make wine out of tears seems pretty awesome.

I am sure that Nic will forget me, but I will never forget her. I will never have another Memorial Day when I don't think and pray for her and her son.

The links above link to eulogies and to an interview with Nic that was aired on NPR.