My son left for the middle East in February 2009. First stop was Kuwait for four months then Iraq for one month then he went to Spain where he is till date.

It has been one of the hardest things I have ever in my life gone through. Wondering all the time if he was safe.

Before he joined the military I used to sit and watch the news and try to put myself in the place of those parents whose sons, daughters, husbands and wives were. I really never wanted to be one of those who had their loved ones in harms way on a daily basis until it happened to me…

Once I became a Navy mom things seemed different some how. I was a proud parent! He made me feel as if I had done something right with my life by having him. My heart and mind knew that my baby had joined the military for many reasons. First of many being he wanted to protect us all from danger. To put his life before everyone else’s and try to make the world a better place for us all to live.

I also had a mind set that if by chance he did not come home that he was fighting for something he truly believed in, but for a Mom the worry never stopped! Even now with him being in Spain I have times of uneasiness.

Now with less than a month to go before he comes back to the ones who love him and the ones he loves I find myself feeling anxious and can hardly wait to hold him in my arms and know for a fact he is back on American soil. That he did his time and now it is behind us all.

I can tell by the way he talks that he has changed since his deployment almost 6 months ago. He has grown and gone through and seen things a Mom never wants her babies to be exposed to. He will carry these memories for the rest of his life.

I can now relate to all the troops fighting for our freedom and also for their families. It is not easy going through being away from your child, your brother, your sister, your Mother, or your father. Many Americans have gone or are going through this each passing day.

I do not know how to explain the feelings that I feel inside but I do know that ya I am the mom and my son has accomplished a wonderful unselfish task as the rest of our troops have. Without men and woman like my son the world would not be what it is today. The risk their lives and also go through leaving their families behind on hold until their return. It takes a special person to give these things to not only the people they love but also many complete strangers.

With that said I would like to thank my son and every other soldier fighting for freedom! The sacrifices you make does make a difference to each and every American on earth.

My brave soldier is coming home!

All photos in this article are the authors.

More of mine:

Letters Home

Waiting For Your Safe Return

United States Navy SeaBee

A Mother’s Love