ohblahdee, ohbladah...

life goes on...

one of the weirdest things about being over here is realizing that life just keeps happening at home. it didn't stop just because we got on a plane and flew around the world. and you KNOW that, and you get phone calls and letters and emails that let you know what's going on back in the world, but sometimes it still bites you in the ass. while you're gone babies are born, birthdays and holidays come and go, people graduate high school or college, loved ones die, loved ones leave, friends and family get fired and promoted, the works.

my sister passed away during this last year. i made it home in time to see her before the cancer got her, but just the change between then and the last time i saw her was amazing. and seeing the rest of the family and catching up with them and what had happened involved a couple mind blowing moments. since we've been in country over 13% of our unit has had to go home on emergency leave because of serious illnesses or deaths in the family. the other day i was talking to a friend and realized that he'd graduated. here i was thinking he still had a year of classes left. well, that year has come and gone.

the last time i was mobilized and deployed it wasn't for anywhere near as long. but the same effect was there. at the time, i thought i was totally self centered and felt really bad about it. but then i talked about it with other people and just found out it was the nature of the beast. yeah, we are really focused on what we're doing over here, but we kind of have to be. it's the job. but the side effect of it is that it keeps you from missing home too much and dwelling on what you're missing. that's a good thing.