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I was 4. I had on my favorite light pink jacket, I wore white tights underneath my cream colored dress with pink ruffles and white mary-janes although they were probably more off-white than white because I was 4 and had no concept of keeping my nice things nice.
I had a small American flag with a yellow ribbon tied to the top of the stick it hung on, I held it in my right hand, waving it back and forth. I could hear the sirens from the firetrucks and as the trucks got closer the sirens got louder, and the red paint on the trucks got brighter, and my father’s face became more visible. My dad had just returned home from Desert Storm. This is the first memory I have of my father, at least the first that I can remember without the aid of pictures. And it is this memory that has shaped a large part of who I am today.
Growing up a military kid was an experience unto itself and it’s not quite explainable or understandable unless you too belong(ed) to the military kid club, it’s not something you volunteer for, it’s something your born into. And to explain it with words just doesn’t do it justice, or make much sense to those unfamiliar with it. I’ve grown up all over the world, and to quote an old friend, “home is where the Air Force sends you.” Moving around as much as I have, witnessing as much as I did growing up wasn’t easy. But somewhere along the way, I managed to become a relatively well-adjusted adult with a thirst for new people, new places and new adventures.
So, here I am. I love my God. I love my family. I love my friends. I love my job. I love my life. I don’t know where it will take me or when or how it’ll take me there, but I do know the type of person I want to become (for the most part) and so far I think I — with a whole lot of help from two outstanding parents, fantastic friends and a gracious God — have done a pretty swell job getting there.
This blog is where I think and attempt to make some sense of not only myself and where I’m going, but about the world around me and where it’s going. I probably won’t make any genius revelations, and I might, only occasionally, produce something that other people will find value in reading, but here it is, good or bad, pretty or ugly, ready or not — my story.
