Suicide Bombings

Today I woke up to the headline, "5 US troops among 18 killed in Afghanistan suicide attack." Again I was scared to click on the link. I often wonder how I would want to find out if something really did happen to Mario. Would I prefer a call from a co-worker or the dreaded knock on the door by the military chaplain? I definitely would not want to find out from an online article so I don't know why I always click on it. I guess the knock at the door would be better because at least there is someone there to comfort me. Mario says one of the chaplains on base is LDS so he would probably come and probably bring our Bishop with him. It makes me cry just thinking about this scenario.

Anyway, I did click and read the news. I found out the time and realized I had talked to Mario just after the bombings. I guess he didn't know about them yet. Regardless, I knew he was safe. It appears they were targeting the military and bombed some vehicles. Sounds like they were the same kind of SUV's that Mario drives almost daily, probably even the same roads he drives daily.

I keep telling myself that at least if something happens to Mario, I have no doubt he will make it to the Celestial Kingdom. He is a very good man, husband, and father. Ok, now I am crying again. This morning, I received this very kind email from his LDS co-worker who has been a very good friend to Mario.

Hi Terry (Terri) sp?,
Your husband wanted me to drop you a quick line letting you know he is safe and sound. There was a bombing in the area today and wanted to let you know. He has been in some meetings today which have prevented him from letting you know this.

While I am at it I would like to thank you and your children for the great sacrifice you are making at home. I know from my perspective that the family members of Military members should receive as much recognition as any soldier fighting this battle for freedom. Thanks again for all of your efforts, faith, trust, and prayers.

Grant Horsley

Afghanistan Plane Crash

Mario told me that he was flying to Bagram, Afghanistan today. He has to travel around Kabul almost everyday, but he has never had to take a flight anywhere. He was excited about his trip and I want to be excited for him, but I would be happier if he never left his base. Today, when I woke up, I checked the news headlines. This was one of the top stories, "Plane carrying 44 down in Afghanistan." I wasn't sure if I should click on the link or not, but I did and was relieved to find out that it was a plane flying into Kabul and not one leaving Kabul. Eric quickly reminded me not to read the news.

Then a couple hours later, while I was at the dr with Eric, Mario called to tell me he never left Kabul. He waited at the airport for 11 hours before they finally canceled his flight due to bad weather. Their mission had been scrapped. I wasn't disappointed. He said it was a good day because he finished the first Work and Glory book, read lots of conference talks, and took a nap. It was the first relaxing day he has had in 3 months. I am so glad he had a day to rest.

Better Day

I had a good day yesterday. I took my Toyota in to the shop because the power door was only working half the time. I googled possible solutions to the problem and was freaked out when I saw that most people were paying $1600-$2500 to have their doors fixed. When we bought the van, I told Mario I didn't want a power door because repairs would be expensive. But he persisted and I have loved the door. I found out that I am one of the lucky ones and it only needs a $110 new latch (at least for now.) Toyota is getting a bad rap right now with all the recalls but I stand behind my van. I love it and have not had anything mechanically go wrong yet (knock on wood).

Then I talked to Eric's principal, the PE teacher, and the Radiologist who gave me all the good news that I had been hoping for. Eric wouldn't have to do summer school due to his excellent grades, his PE teacher would go easy on him, and the Radiologist said that I shouldn't worry about the shield. But he did have a talk with his technicians about proper procedures and he even thanked me for letting him know because he is not back there with them and doesn't know when they make a mistake unless someone informs him. I also signed my twins up for summer camp for 4 days and I talked Erin into going to full-day summer camp for 5 days. I wish there was a full time (all summer long) summer camp for the boys that was close by. But that would probably cost me a fortune. Everything multiplied times 2 seems like a fortune to me. Twins aren't cheap!

Best news of all...Mario hit the 3 month mark yesterday. So if he hadn't been extended 2 weeks, he would be about half way done. But 3 1/2 more months to count down is way better than 6! I am also excited that Missy and her kids are coming in a couple weeks. That should help the time go faster too.

Casualties of War

Dear Terri,

I'm excited that it's Thursday. That means a relaxed evening and the morning off. I'm really looking forward to church.

This has been the fastest week since I've been here. I've gotten a lot more engaged in the work and understanding so much more. Grant has been a great friend too, which makes this all more bearable.

This is a challenging place for some members of the church. I've seen one guy fall away completely, another is on the way, and one looks to be battling hard and winning.

The first guy is a young, good looking Army soldier, in the prime of his life. He came to church the first two weeks and even a FHE back in late Feb when he first arrived. He wasn't overly friendly, but he was there. He didn't come back. I've been seeing him once in awhile. At first he would just nod, now he won't make eye contact. Yesterday I saw him in the gym working out with a couple other soldiers. I heard the guys he was with swearing up a storm. I quickly turned up the volume on my music player hoping to not hear him. It's too painful to see a young saint falling.

The other member is an older civilian guy from Ft Huachuca that started out strong (came in March), even gave a great talk in church. Super friendly with a family back home, a kid in college and one on a mission. Now he's hit or miss... mostly miss... at church. Today I found him smoking in the smokers pit behind my building. I walked up to shake his hand before I knew what he was doing and just saw it. I tried not to show any reaction as I greeted him and I quickly walked away.

There was another young Airman member of the church I saw looking at the smokeless tobacco at our BX. He didn't see me until he turned around to walk out (I guess he decided not to do it). I just played it off as if I didn't see him. He wouldn't speak to me for awhile, but I always said hi when I saw him. He still comes to church and even tries to bang out a few notes for our hymns (valiant effort). He sits and talks to me in the dining facility occasionally now. And now he always says hi and is very friendly. I think he went through a spiritual battle and I suspect he won (I figure since he's friendly and active).

My eyes well up when I think of the loss the first two brothers... casualties in a deadlier war than the physical one here.

Please share this with the kids. We all go through trials. Once you slip out of the light, it's hard to find your way back. I'm thankful I've made the decision long before coming out here to take the high road. I could have never made that decision while being here with temptation everywhere.

I love you and appreciate your encouragement and example of obedience. Let us pray for all three of the brothers out here. It's never too late to repent and get back on the high road.

Love,
Mario

One-handed Archery

Today when I picked Eric up from school, he told me that his PE teacher asked him to participate in archery with the rest of the class. Eric declined. I am not quite sure how archery works one-handed. It is funny how defensive moms become of their kids. I was upset and immediately called her but had to settle with leaving her a voicemail. I was probably a little rude when I asked her if she would like to see the ER report or a letter from the Orthopedic surgeon. I guess because it doesn't have a cast on and he only has a sling, she thinks it is not very serious. I hope she doesn't mark him down on his PE grade because that would ruin his straight A streak. I wish they could give him an alternative elective, but PE is required. Needless to say, I am not happy about the stupidity of some people. She still expects Eric to work out each day. I am not quite sure what he will do other than walk. Even walking can be dangerous if he trips and falls on his arm. Thank goodness school is about out (and my homework will end.)

Long, Rough Day

I finally was able to get Eric an appointment with the Orthopedic PA. He agreed to see Eric after Mario called the clinic from Afghanistan to get the ball rolling. I called the ER and found that they hadn't sent the ER report to the dr so that is where the hold-up started. The dr asked me to go pick up the ER x-rays and bring him in as soon as I could get there. That presented a challenge since I have 2 six-year-olds that needed to go to kindergarten in an hour. I called a classmate's mom and asked her to watch the boys for the hour. She kindly agreed and I left to pick Eric up from school. If Eric misses more than 9 days of school a semester, he has to do summer school. We didn't realize he had already missed 8 days. I can't imagine them making a straight A student do summer school but I am not sure how strict they are with the rules. So Eric is a bit nervous. The lady in the front office agreed that it would be crazy to send him to summer school.

Anyway, Eric and I left and went to the hospital and then to the clinic for more x-rays before seeing Orthopedics. The first x-rays weren't good enough so they sent us back for more. That is when I realized they didn't put the shield over Eric during the first set of x-rays. Everyone assures me that he will be fine and not a big deal unless it happened several times. I emailed the radiologist's wife (who is a friend) to ask her to ask her husband. Then I realized that he probably won't be able to answer me since it is his clinic that made the mistake and one thing I noticed about drs is that they clam up when it come to malpractice.

Anyway, second set of x-rays were better. Eric's elbow has some small fractures as well but they are old fractures. So nothing to be concerned with. He received a better sling from the dr and is doing much better with the new one. The dr told us that he didn't want Eric going to scout camp. It was taking too much of a risk that he would break it again.

After the dr, I rushed Eric back to school hoping that they wouldn't count his 2 1/2 hours away as a half day absence. When he returned from school, he informed me that his teachers want me to write for him so he can do his classwork and homework. Ugh! I will never complain about him doing his homework in school again. This is terrible. Now I have to help the twins and Eric. Fortunately school is out in less than 3 weeks. So now I am hoping that the teachers will slack off and not give much work.

After homework and being the taxi driver for Erin, I came home and made dinner for the kids, took Sister Park a meal since she had surgery last week, had FHE, and finally sat down to relax and watch the first hour of Titanic with the big kids. I love our Clearplay DVD player. It edits movies down to PG. So now my kids can watch just about anything unless it isn't appropriate due to thematic elements.

I hope that tomorrow is a very boring day.

Mother's Day

This morning I received this email (notice all the artwork from the kids and friends on his office wall):

Then when I called my mom to wish her a Happy Mother's Day, she said she saw the picture of Mario on my blog. I had no idea what she was talking about so I looked. Mario has never posted pictures to my blog. But he had replaced the picture of him and I at the beach with this picture:

He sent me a couple necklaces, chocolate, and gum. Erin made me lasagna for dinner and I bought a Trader Joe's cheesecake for dessert. It was a good day but I look forward to next year when Mario is home to help me celebrate. His birthday and Father's Day are the same day this year so that day will be hard on the kids and I but at least it is one day instead of two days of sadness.