Back in the Saddle Yet Again...

Well hello there my long lost friends! I know it's been too long since we last got together. My apologies for abandoning you all for so long, but rest assure that you were not forgotten. In fact, since my last post there have been some big changes in my life. In February we lost my step-dad to ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). He fought hard, but in the end it was a battle that he just couldn't win. He was an amazing dad, and someone that has taught me just as much in death as he did in life.

You're probably wondering how this pertains to my life as a military spouse and as a mother with a disability. Well, let me enlighten you. On the morning of February 23rd I received the phone call that I hoped to would never come, but with life we must also accept death. As soon as I got the details, I hung up the phone and proceeded to work hard to get an emergency flight back home to be with my family. As a military spouse, we're almost never stationed around family so when things like this happen it makes an already stressful situation even worse.

When I found a flight that would be leaving from Monterey a few hours later, I was actually relieved that I would be able to get to my family as soon as I could. This couldn't have went down any different. After multiple flight changes due to weather, mechanical issues, etc. I arrived in Indianapolis where my best friend greeted me. Boy, was I glad to see her...just not under these circumstances. The next few days were an absolute blur.

Once I arrived back in Monterey, I sat down at my computer to write my next post, but words plagued me. I struggled to understand why for the first time in my life, I was speechless. I thought that when Larry died, he took my confidence as a writer with him. After all, he and my mom have always been my biggest "cheerleaders." For the past several months, I have doubted my ability to write about things that you all will find interesting, while still explaining how they pertain to my life as a military spouse and a mother with a disability. Last night Larry came to me in a dream. He told me that if I didn't start writing again, then my "talent" would be wasted.

I'll be honest, I'm not sure if I have "talent" or if I'm just seriously passionate about the craft of writing, no matter what it is that I'm writing about. But here I am...back in the saddle again. I was recently asked what my dream job would be. It wasn't something that I even had to think about. I have known since the 5th grade that I have wanted to be a writer, but more than that I want to teach children to write creatively. After all, this is where I realized what I was meant to do with my life. This dream has NEVER changed. You see, it didn't die when Larry did...it was simply displaced for awhile. What amazes me is that even in death Larry is still cheering me on. So, just because most military families will never be stationed close to their families, it doesn't mean that our families don't continue to have a major impact in our lives.

Thanks for giving me the push that I needed to "get back in the saddle again" Larry. I love you and miss you always! So until next time, think about what your dreams. What did you want to be when you grew up? Is that still your dream? If so, how can you work on making that dream a reality?