When One Family Member Deploys…

Great article by Dave Shiflett in The Wall Street Journal. He talks firsthand about the lives of family members of soldiers serving abroad. It is a great article and features some great thoughts and quotes.   WHILE MY SON SERVES

A few snippets:

• “After his enlistment I had to ask why he would join an organization where taking orders is a way of life. “It’s how you get to the big game,” he replied. Put another way, he’s a single young man looking for adventure—and perhaps meaning—and tends to believe that the people who man the office cubicles are the real drones.  He certainly chose an unusual path: Fewer than 1% of Americans wear the uniform these days. That, in turn, puts families of deployed soldiers in something of a world of their own. “
• “When I’m out in the desert, I feel like I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing,’ our son said after returning home. Sometimes you have to travel 7,000 miles to find a sense of purpose.”
• “It does seem that the people with the biggest heart for war never seem to have any blood on the line. “

Besides writing for the Wall Street Journal and other publications, Mr. Shiflett posts his writing and original music at www.daveshiflett.com.