Eleven Care Packages

He said:

I received eleven care packages in the mail today.

Last night I was chatting with my wife on Facebook. She'd just gone through several very stressful and hectic days, and she commented that she wished I were there (not deployed to Afghanistan) to give her hug. I wished that too---first because I sympathized with what she'd been through and wanted to provide comfort to her; second, because I personally was craving a hug. It occurred to me that the last time I had any physical contact with another human being other than perhaps a handshake was 144 days before when I said goodbye to my wife and our three boys, gave them hugs, and boarded a plane to begin my travel to Afghanistan.

Thinking on this made me realize just how wonderful it is to receive a hug from someone special. A hug can communicate so many things. I love you. I'll miss you. I have missed you. It is good to see you again. I'm sorry. It'll be okay. On and on.

So I posted on my Facebook status the fact that it had been 144 days since I last received a hug.

Then today when I went in to work, I was amazed to see that mail had come in and that I received ELEVEN, yes ELEVEN, care packages.

This is proof that God has a sense of humor.

I received a box of baked goodies from a friend. I received nine boxes from a friend's company, with help from the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, full of a myriad of snacks and sweets and magazines and notepads and pens and sundry. I also received a live (Charlie Brown-sized) Christmas tree from a 2nd grade class in New York working with a local tree farm. I'm quite certain I don't know any 2nd graders in New York. Quite certain of that. I was also completely unaware that one could get a live pine tree through Customs from America to Afghanistan. I am completely perplexed as to how an elementary school in New York obtained my name and my deployment address.

On top of that, my boss also received five huge boxes of snacks and toiletries from our deployment office in Maryland. I commented to one of my team members that between the five of us, we don't have enough teeth to use all the toothpaste we received during our final month here.

We put all the boxes on a big table. My team and a group of Soldiers we are here to support had lots of fun going through all the boxes, laying claim to this flavor of fruit snack, that magazine...oh hey! Tabasco Slim Jim! It was like...well, it was like Christmas!

Several of the Soldiers were absolutely delighted by the live Christmas tree! It didn't come with a stand, but no problem. Within 15 minutes, we'd nailed two boards together, filled a big coffee can with rocks, cut the top off a water bottle, stuck the tree in the water bottle, stuck the water bottle in the coffee can, duct taped the coffee can to the boards, and wired the tree down to the boards for further stability. And five minutes after that the tree was covered in garland and ornaments.

The care packages were also full of nice letters from all the kids and the adults, thanking us for our service and our contributions to the freedom and security Americans enjoy, praying for our safe return, wishing us joy for the upcoming holidays. One card in particular struck my attention, from one of the second graders: "Thank you for saving our country."

Having served 19 years in the Navy, I've grown quite accustomed to being approached by random people thanking me for my service. I am glad the time of my service is now...so much has changed from the Vietnam era to the post-Gulf War and post-9/11 eras.

My original intentions in joining the Navy were for college money. I stayed with it because I enjoyed it. I don't think most of us, joining right out of high school, truly understand what the oath means when we take it. But it sinks in, deep down, after a few years. "I solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America, against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same..."

It means that we love America, whether we agree with everything or not. We love the freedom Americans have. We love our way of life. We love knowing Americans can rest safely within our borders. We will aggressively pursue anyone and anything that threatens that freedom and that safety. We will sacrifice our time, endure hardships, endure separation from our loved ones, sacrifice our very lives because we know the collective sacrifice of our fellow Sailors, Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, and Coast Guardsmen --- past, present, and future --- helps to ensure the continuance of our great country and our way of life.

Yes, those are often vague and lofty ideals, perhaps a bit esoteric even. But those are the ideals we hold deep down in our hearts, giving us the honor, courage, and commitment to face each new challenge.

Those ideals remind me every day of why I serve.

And when some random stranger stops me in a bar to buy me a beer, or approaches me in a store or the airport to say "thank you for your service"....or better yet, when some random 2nd grader from a New York city I've never even heard of takes time out of his life to help raise money to buy a Christmas tree and to send a card saying "thank you for saving our country" to a random Sailor half the world away in a city in Afghansitan he's never heard of...well that reminds me just who I'm serving for.


I received eleven care packages in the mail today.