Beginning Again

Starting any new task can be difficult. Sometimes you have to start more then once. Since joining the military in '06 I've had to restart plenty of times. Each new time becomes a little less demanding, and I'll admit that there have been several occasions where a restart was actually a breath of fresh air.

After this deployment to Afghanistan,we're getting ready for another new beginning. A lot has changed the last 6 months and God only knows what is waiting for us up ahead. But that is the challenge, no two beginnings are the same. The only constant is that there is no consistency, there is never a 'pick up where you left off'. Each separation has its unique effect on each person in the family. This creates a weird situation where the same family in no way resembles what they were before.

I hope that by writing about the experiences of my family that you, the reader, can learn and understand that change is OK and that challenge and difficulty are to be welcomed and accepted as a part of life. Most military families have some sort of ritual they complete upon each reintegration, something that reminds them that they are the same people in the 'after' as they were in the 'before'. This is simply not true. Of course there are varying levels of change that takes place from family to family, but still change occurs.

Let us embrace change and use it as a powerful force for good.

To beginning again!

- Stone