Through these disasters, I am naturally inclined to think of our military families. I've already heard reports of ships being sent out to sea to prevent damage to them along the coastline in CA and subs being torn away from their mooring lines in Guam. When natural disasters strike or are threatened to strike, Navy vessels often have to leave port to prevent damage to the ports or vessels. But, while the men & women aboard these ships are getting them secured, their spouses are left behind with the job of making sure that their families are secure. There is always the risk of families being separated during natural disasters, but with our military families, this separation is also a necessary evil to maintain the safety of our country's biggest investments (thereby the safety of our country). I think being quasi-landlocked at this point in our military fam lives that sometimes I forget those times of being a single married spouse/parent and take them for granted. Nothing like being home alone when there's been an attempted child abduction and the perps have taken a good look @ you AND your kids or being pregos & about to give birth while the city is about to be evacuated during a hurricane and your hubby is stuck in a steel tube out at sea or having someone try to break into your house while said hubby is out to sea AND while YOU are at home alone with your children (only to have the local nimcompoop sheriff tell you that it must have been a racoon bumping into your door...yeah, a giant 160+ lb. raccoon who knows there's a woman and small children home alone)....or the Noreaster that wreaks havoc and shuts down 7 cities but your husband can't leave the submarine that's drydocked because they are responsible for her safety...all the while the entire area is flooding around him and wondering if the sub will just drop him off at our doorstep since cars are being trapped in floods left and right. But the thing is, you can never freak out about being separated during these times because ultimately, you are responsible for the health & welfare...and SANITY of yourself and any little human beings (and fur babies) you may have. Start adopting a bad attitude and/or stress about it and your kids are sure to follow suit.
Now, I sit and wait to see if there will be any damage to HI. Our friends, friends by way of the military turned family through love & time, are waiting to see what fallout from Japan's earthquake & tsunami will bring to them. Please send your prayers/thoughts out to them. Our brother Al escorted Jaimee and the kids to higher elevation, only to have to return back down to Pearl Harbor to man a communication center. To be separated from your spouse and/or family during such an uncertain time is unfathomable but necessary when you are a military family. Jaimee has encountered attempted break-ins (WHILE SHE WAS HOME ALONE WITH TWO TODDLERS...and we won't go into the joke of a 911 call that she had to place only to have them tell her that she would need to hang up and call base police...ALL WHILE THE DUDE WAS STILL TRYING TO BREAK IN), flooding, a 10-month long 6-month deployment, and other such dramas that you think would only happen on a t.v. show. Still, this family faces everything with such grace and gratitude for the blessings in their lives...they are a constant inspiration to us...as people, parents, and partners. They truly epitomize the saying "when life gives you lemons...make lemonade" as I have rarely heard a complaint come from these two with whatever hardship they may face. Their three beautiful children have always reflected their parents' beautiful souls and strength...always being THE models for our children.
Praying for your safety!
This (Jaida's tank)...
