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There you are
face to face with me on Skype
thousands of miles away.
A grown man, but still my son,
Lieutenant Colonel, US Army;
Iraq War, February 2004...
You are there.

You tell me you are safe– 
after all, you are an officer and
Brigade Commander...an engineer.
You have guards and interpreters...
You are trained so well for survival...
But still...things can happen...
and they have...even to officers.*

I wait for your return...your Dad waits too...
sixteen long months...first tour of duty.
Your wife and children –our grandchildren– 
your sisters, we all wait...but thankful 
that halfway you get a short leave to spend 
with your wife and children in Germany.

Every day...we wonder...
Are you flying in a helicopter–
those frequent enemy targets?
Or directing military engineering projects, 
for sure near the war zones?
Will there be roadside bombs on your path?
Too many scenarios...too many worries.
Too many stories in the news.

As an officer, you have to send out
those sad letters about your men, your soldiers...
to their families, now with broken hearts...
too many sons...who are not coming home.
My heart aches for them...their waiting is over.

I wait...your father waits...your family waits.
The months go very slow.
Missed Thanksgivings, Christmases, 
birthdays...and just ordinary family days...
but still...a miracle to see your face on Skype.

Then...one day you are here!  Back in the USA– 
back home to your family...back home to us!
Prayers answered...You are home safe!
Not on Skype...you are here for real.

However...not for long...
Second tour coming up...fifteen more months...
Many more sleepless nights...more worries,
many, many more days missing you– 
and many, many more days waiting...
praying...and waiting.

Finally, months go by...prayers answered...
safely, you come home from the war...
September 2006...
two and one-half long years of waiting.

You serve our country well...another four years
here in our dear USA, at the Pentagon. 
You retire as Colonel, July 2010– 
after twenty-nine years of service.

Of all those twenty-nine years, 
I, your mother, will always remember those
longest two and one-half years...
those years of worry...those years of waiting.

But still, dear son, I am
so very proud and thankful for your service.


Sandra M. Haight

~3rd Place~
Contest:  Waiting
Sponsor: James Rogers
Judged: 09/20/2015

  
 *Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) 
     Military Deaths and Wounded
     Officers Killed In Action: 427
     Officers Wounded: 1,880
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