Well, 349 days after William left for Afghanistan, he's back in the country.   He arrived back in the US on July 16th, 2005, at  5:57 AM!!!!!!!!  They were scheduled to be back at 2AM, so, at 1:45AM, they rushed  us all  into a gym, only for them to be SERIOUSLY delayed.  But after a year, what's 4 more hours in the middle of the night?    It was actually torchor.  Finally, over  4 hours late, over 200 soldiers eturned safely to a gymnasium full of anxious, excited, and exhausted children, moms, dads, grandparents, and many, many extended family members awaiting their arrival at Ft. Bragg, and true to form,  there was NO AIR CONDITIONER!!   Anyone who had spent any time trying to look nice for their returning soldier had done so in vain, because after nearly 4 hours of waiting in a 100+ degree gym, everyone was drenched. 

I have no words that could adequately describe the emotion there that night, and I will not try, because if you were not there, and have never experienced it, there is no way to put it into words.  It's like a big ball of every emotion you've ever had in your life, rolled together.  Love doesn't even begin to cover it.   The girls got to William far before I did, but when I did, and he finally got to me through the mass, to hug me, all I could do was cry and repeat over and over again for about 5 min.  "Thank you GOD". 

For now, I am sharing most of the pictures that have been captured through his year there, most taken by him, but some by others, so please do not use them in emails, on any websites, etc., b/c we've all been asked not to do so.   Some may be difficult to look at, but most are just pictures of them trying to make a difference. 

  Most everyone knows that in April, William called one Sunday night to tell me that he was leaving for a medical "mission" (I don't care if I never hear that word again as long as I live!),  to tell me that he loved me, and that he would probably not be able to call home for several days, so I shouldn't worry.  Just  as they were getting ready to leave, at the last minute, b/c of the fact that some of their own soldiers had been injured, they were canceling the mission he was scheduled for, and sending him with injured soldiers that were being medivac'd out.  2 helicopters took off from his base, and only one made it to it's destination.  William's life was spared that morning, and again on about 3 other occassions.  While he wonders  sometimes why it was spared, I am just thankful that it was.  

Last, on a personal note, I just want to thank everyone for the many, many prayers that were said, care packages sent, letters mailed, emails sent, just to keep in touch, and  the literal thousands of kind words spoken about William while he was gone, and the words of encouragement offered to me.  This has been the most difficult year of my life, and I hope that we never have to experience anything like it again.  My wish would be for no one to ever have to experience it.  After 14 yrs. of marriage, a year apart is difficult at best.  A year apart, when the person you love more than anything in the world is in a war zone is absolute terror.  It was as if part of my soul was missing while he was gone.  It was a void that no one but him could fill.  Especially for the girls........William is a phenomenol dad, and they missed him terribly, but still all managed to maintain honor roll in shcool while he was gone.  Their joy at seeing him walk through the doors of that gym that night, however, was unmistakable.  They spent 2 hours in the bathroom curling each other's hair, putting on makeup, hair spray, etc. getting ready to see their dad.  We all  knew that this time, he didn't have to go back.   So many people were so supportive of us while he was away......far more than I could ever mention here.  So, to all of you........THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!