After the whirlwind of flying to AL for a funeral last weekend, I’m now getting time to edit some photos from my Texas trip.
My amazing brother-in-law is being shipped out to Afghanistan for a year. He’s already into week 2 and is still state side for a few more weeks before he goes over – over.
One of the things the military suggested to help make the time go by for my niece and sister was to make a chain with the days counting down to his arrival back from Afghanistan.
While I was there, my sister was cutting up strips of brightly colored paper, numbering them, and then he would later sit down and write notes on them. He had a calendar already dated with the number of days he would be gone, so if day 16 happened to be a Sunday… he might have said something like “Say a Prayer for me in church”.
Touching huh?
He had funny quips… “Do you know where weird people live?” and when my niece tears down the next one… it will be her address to her home.
Since I arrived at the beginning of the process, it was numbered from 1, being the last day he would be over-seas, and returning home… seeing #1 saying “hold on until I do” if he gets extended – it just tore at my heart.
From what I remember – it’s 292 or 296 days he’ll be gone. So 292 / 296 strips of brightly colored paper is strung in a chain all over the house – #1 is at the door… It’s going to be a long 292 days.
So when you are in church, or just in a deep thought – say a prayer for Uncle Chief and for all our military personnel.
