Posted on 05/07/2011 4:05:33 AM PDT by panthermom
Hey Y'all
My son is leaving for Afghanistan early this week and I am going crazy. I have never felt such strong conflicting feelings in my life. I won't dare express my fears to my son. I am so very proud of him and terrified for him at the same time.
To the military Moms and Dads out there....will it get better?
Please say a prayer for him and all of our troops!
My nephew was in Iraq for a year. He was with a superbly trained outfit, and they took their missions seriously.
My brother and his wife said it got easier once he was there, and was able to communicate with him on a regular basis.
God bless.
It gets better, but only if you don’t think about it in terms of “what ifs”. That was my experience anyway. I’ll be praying for your son.
I do not have sons in the military, but I am a student of history. If you think of your son as a participant in something greater than himself, then it puts his service into a much more profound perspective. God bless you.
I am preparing myself for no communication. He will be in a very remote part of the country. I’m trying to get my brain to think, no news is good news.
Remember, dear FRiend, God knows what He is doing.
That is what is killing me now, LOL! All I can think of is him getting ambushed. At the end of April they lost their first friend from BCT in an Ambush.
May the Lord Bless Him And Keep Him Safe..
And may the Lord bless you with knowledge that he is in God’s hands.. All will be well..
Amen
If it helps, I've been in the combat zone for seven years and still have all my fingers and toes. :)
Hey Allegra, my brother is a contractor over in that wonderful place called Iraq, ha ha.
I don’t want sympathy because it is not about me, I’m not doing anything, they are the ones willing to put it all on the line. I just need to vent. He is the only one of his close friends from HS that chose this route. If I start getting too soft he tells me I will lose my Hooah Mom status, lol.
Panthermom,
Yes it does get easier, the moment he gets off some damn jet back here in the U.S.A. you will feel a huge sigh of relief.
Until then we will all pray for your Hero son.
Tell him that, and tell him of your fears.
And may GOD bless.
My son was in Iraq towards the beginning of the war. It was very hard in the beginning as there was no communication set up. After a few months there was some internet access and then we lost that. I don’t know if I was naive but I always believed he would come back. Fortunately, he did as did everybody in his company.
It has made him a stronger more self reliant person.
You just have to keep the faith that everything will be fine. I won’t tell you not to worry because that’s what we mother’s are supposed to do. I hope you have a lot of family support and people to talk to when you need to.
Give your son a hug for me.
I don’t understand why you wouldn’t be able to say “I’m afraid *for* you, but I’m proud *of* you. It makes sense, and he might actually need to hear it. And I will pray for Panthermom’s son.
Tell him we are so grateful for his service, and for yours as well.
No news is good news. I can understand that completely. I sent off my daughter back to the Dominican Republic last week. I prayed constantly for her safe arrival back to the village she teaches in. She arrived safely, but her travels and safety are always in the forefront of my thinking.
I would put something in your tagline like “please pray for my son in Afghanistan”
I did something like that when mine was in Iraq and the comments I received from FReepers were a comfort and a strength.
I did have good comm while he was there. Do you know if they get mail in the field? If so, writing those letters, like we did when they were in boot camp, can give you something else positive to do for him.
My son first went to Kuwait to participate in the initial strike on Iraq. He later went back to Al Asad in Anbar Province. More recently, he was in Afghanistan. From my experience, it doesn’t get much easier; however, communication is so advanced these days that you will most likely be able to exchange emails and even get occasional phone calls. That makes it much, much easier to bear! Like others have said, it will definitely be easier when he comes home. Until that day, pray! And I will pray for your son as well. God bless you all.
Will add your son to my prayers. Don’t think you can really do anything about the anxiety but pray. Hope the time passes quickly until he returns home.
Thank you for raising a son who serves, and please thank him for his service for me.
mrs
I don’t have kids in the military but I’m a Mom. I can see and feel your fears. Even grown, they are still your babies. I will pray for your strength and courage and for his safety. This idea is probably stupid but have you considered keeping a writing journal for him while he is gone. You can write daily about what you have done, felt, etc... You can even clip out newspaper articles or local paper articles about things you two would have talked about. When he comes home, he can have the book/journal/diary.. whatever you choose to call it. If you think that is lame just disregard. Either way, God Bless him and you.
Prayers for your son panthermom.My Granddaughter was 2nd wave 4ID in Iraq.You kinda hold your breath until they get home.The good news is she fell in love there to a wonderful young man and they married about 9 months ago:)
They made me the Squad/Platoon Mom, so I have to keep my Hooah status, lol. Actually, I really am the Platoon Mom, but they told me that the Squad gets first dibs on the stuff I send.
I am working with our local American Legion to get supplies sent to them. The only thing I know is that they will be on a COP and not a FOB.
He knows I am afraid for him, we talked face to face when he was on pre-deployment leave, so I try to be upbeat. He LOVES the Army, it was an easy transition for him, he even loved Basic. I could not imagine how I would feel if he felt he had made a mistake and was just buying time. He has made wonderful friends.
My brother who is a vet and who works in Iraq as a contractor as a weapons trainer went up to see him and met his Sgt. and said he is experienced and in good hands.
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