She drives the Jeep with the yellow ribbon into the driveway and carries a four-year-old towheaded little boy who is fast asleep into the house. A couple of minutes later, she reappears and bends over to retrieve another sleeping child, this one looks about two. The garage door slowly rolls down, and I think how many times this little scenario plays out each evening in the suburbs and homes of America.
While any mom worth her salt lugs sacks of groceries and the dead weight of sleeping kiddos with the best of ’em, in our family this duty always fell to dad.
Here, though, the task falls on mom. She is now in reality a “single mom” who is alone in the evening caring for her two young boys while daddy serves his country in Iraq. During the days now, their yard is devoid of the sounds of giggles and shouts of “Daaaaaad!”
A couple of houses up the street, I hear a loud ruckus and see several children pounding at the door. “Daddy, daddy,” they shout as daddy comes to the door and goes out to play.
6 comments:
This post brought out the tissues, Sheila. It's really, really good.
This whole scenario just breaks my heart.
Thank you for writing about this.
This is the reality for all of the families who serve.
Yesterday, in Berkeley:
"When the pro-war side sang “God Bless America,” the anti-war people sang, “God Save America.” The pro-warriors called the protesters “commies” and the pro-peace folks called the counter-demonstrators “killers.” The pro-war people shouted “USA” and the anti-war people called out in response: “Out of Iraq.”" --Judith Sherr, Berkeley Daily Planet
We call this progress? We call this discussion? At either end, feelings are running deep. While the rest of us have feelings are as deep, but see the humanity, and are unable to join in the rhetoric when scenarios such as the one you've described are playing out each day.
Marion,
It is sad to see the little boys without their father. He is expected home in January for leave.
Polly,
You are so right. No matter if we think the war has been mishandled as I do or that this is what it will take to keep us safe from terrorists as do others, I like to think we can all agree that these soldiers and their families are the ones directly paying for the effort. I don't think we accomplish much by shouting names at each other. I think the t-shirts you are creating to help raise money for the families is wonderful.
Unfortunately this is the sad scenario for all the families whose fathers are serving in the military Sheila.
Thank you, Sheila, for writing this.
Thank you, also, for writing it without injecting an opinion of right, wrong, or otherwise. You simply told of the reality.
Like Marion, I had tears in my eyes by the time I was finished reading. (I cried on Marion's blog tonight; now I'm crying on yours! Are you two in cahoots or something?!)
God bless you!
BFF,
Miss T
Miss T and Naomi,
Yes, there is a tremendous sacrifice not only on the part of those who signed up for duty but their loved ones back home.
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