Missing Family Time

It is days like today that I really miss my family. We really enjoy going to church together and being around like-minded people.

There are not too many people who think more like you than your nuclear family (those family members that you live with) and going to a church week after week develops a church family of very like-minded people as well.

I picture Katelyn picking out clothes. She is so proud of her selection and comes out to show Mommy, only to learn that her orange shirt does not match her purple pants and probably won't for a few more years.

Colleen has to stop what she is doing and work her way back to help them out and as she does she finds Seth emptying the last bit of tooth-paste onto his toothbrush. She gets him the replacement tube and continues on to help Katelyn.

On her way, she helps Caleb get his tie tied and adjust his mo-hawk (he really does have one you know) and notices their "piggy-bank" which reminds her to pay them their allowance so they can tithe today... that is more important, so she races back to the kitchen to get their money from our allowance jar.

By the time she has their allowance straightened out, Katelyn has fixed her outfit and now has on something cute and appropriate.

One by one the kids come out, ready, and all of them sit down for breakfast.

It is a crazy Sunday morning, but one I miss being a part of. We all know what has to be done and just seem to do it to the best of our abilities to help the family get where it needs to be. Sometimes it needs some extra pushing and sometimes it needs to slow down and relax a bit.

My morning was relatively the same. Meeting preparation followed by meeting, followed by meeting recovery and documentation, followed by a social lunch, followed by ... well, more routine kinds of things.

The difference was that it was with people we are convinced are not all of the same mind. Even among the Iraqi professional colleagues in the room, many differ in their motives, agenda's and objectives. Most of the Marines in the meeting had varying missions and ideas of how things should be.

It was almost like a huge game of chess where 20 people all have pieces on the table and each persons objective is to "win." Alliances of convenience and short duration form, but only until temporary objectives are met.

I miss the little girl hugs my daughter would bring me. I miss the "nuckle-bumps" my boys would exchange with me. I miss my brides goodmorning embrace.

It is Sunday. Dog-gone-it, I miss Mexican food and football!

...Sorry about that out-burst, I just miss home.

Semper Fi,
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