My daughter Heather was only eight years old, and she really could not understand why I had to travel halfway around the world, but more important, why I had to leave her. I have experienced many highs and lows in my life, but I have never felt the extreme pain that rips at one’s heart when they have to leave their children behind to serve their country for an extended period of time. I will never forget heading down the terminal tunnel at Saint Louis Lambert Airport to board my plane and hearing Heather screaming on the top of her lungs, “Daddy PLEASE don’t leave me!” I made the mistake of turning around, and the sight of my miracle baby in complete hysterics still haunts me to this day. I was speechless, and my heart was completely broken. I knew there was nothing I could say or do to make her feel any better at that moment. I had already done my very best to explain to the kids why I had to go. All I could do was yell back to her that I loved her more than life itself, and then I was forced to turn my back on my daughter as a stewardess informed me that it was time to board the plane.
As I took my seat, I could still hear Heather’s desperate pleas for my return, until they shut the terminal doors. Whereas most planes are warm when you board them, to me, the plane was freezing. I have never felt so alone in my life.
Leaving family, friends and the comfort of home is a feeling service people rarely get used to. For most of us, its duty we serve, because our hearts would carry us in a different direction. So when a person is deployed, receiving caring letters in the mail from family and friends is the best morale builder there is.
Belleville, IL
