Veteran's Day

I just wanted to thank our veterans and their families. The boys and I made some gingerbread cookies and delivered them to 2 of our neighbors who are veterans. Their service is something I admit to taking for granted far more than I should. I feel incredibly lucky to live in a country that is safe and free, and I know that a lot of that is due in part to our service men and women.

As the wife of a man who also gets called into service at times to protect our forests from fire, I have had a small taste of what the military families go through. Fire fighters lose their lives, and I certainly worry about him. But at least he's not under hostile fire in another country. Cell phones and the Internet has certainly made it much easier to keep in touch with him, but as in the military, I often have no idea where he is, or how he's doing. So I really do appreciate the role that military families play, and have an inkling of just how incredibly difficult it can be for them.

Finally, as a mother of 2 boys, I have thought about the "what if''s". The realization that each "casualty" is a mother's child makes me yearn and hope above all for peace.