Semper Fidelis

(Ha, Ha, I spelled it right)

 

 

 

 

The Marine Corp theme....Always Faithful. The Few. The Proud. The Marines.....My Son!

 

My son grew up in the 80's and early 90's and whether it was fate or horrible parenting, we bought our first Nintendo while he was young. 

 

That soon became a menace and he still LOVES his video games, always a kid at heart.  He aims now towards the shoot-em up kind, which doesn't surprise me based on his long history with the Marine Corp.

 

He's been a Marine (don't quote me on time) about 8 years and is a Staff Sergeant.  Stationed at Camp Pendleton his whole career.  He's done two tours, one in Iraq and the last one in Afghanistan. 

 

Needless to say this mother couldn't be prouder of this fine young man!  He has found a great love in the Marine Corp and I'm not sure if he's going to go career or not, but he's had trials and truly moments of greatness that will last him a lifetime. 

 

From a normal little boy, throwing rocks at sliding glass door and breaking one of them, to being a boy scout, to barely graduating (due to a bitter divorce between his father and I), he has made his life strong, powerful, loving, mature and he makes such wise choices.

 

He still has his love of playtime and he is the most remarkable father I've ever seen.  My granddaughter Emma is a joy, solid grounded little girl and it's been due to my son and his wife's efforts at raising her to be so.  She has manners, which is so rare these days and she's so funny and knows it.

 

She's a mix of girly girl and tom boy, which in my book is a great combination.  She'll wear a dress, but sport those cowboy boots like their the only shoes she has.  I love her dearly!

 

My son is a treasure, a rare gem that you don't find very often.  He loves with his entire being and he is so good to me.  Loves me and respects me.  He doesn't necessarily like my decisions, but he loves me just the same.  That's a rare trait and I appreciate it just like I do his decisions.

 

Just a HUGE side note:  Where we are staying I'm watching TV and my all time favorite TV show of all time is on.....Daniel Boone.  I LOVE IT!  Ok, back to Brian

 

This will give you some idea of the good nature my son is.  When I was in labor with him, he was 3 weeks late.  He was my only birth that went all natural, no pain and pretty short lived.  At least, that's how I remember it.  He ended up being 10# 23" long and when we left the hospital he was already wearing 3 month size clothing.

 

While he was a toddler, he loved mimicking everything I was doing.  My most favorite memory of him as a toddler was I was cleaning the outside windows and door.  It had those outer panes in them and so it was tedious work. 

 

I was cleaning the door with the painful panes and as I looked up, there was Brian about 18 months, inside the apartment cleaning the inside of the glass with his blanket.  I'll never forget that image and experience as long as I live.  It touched my heart so much.  This was the start of kindness, loving nature.

 

As he grew up in his 5-10 years, proved to be not so loving, but that's a boy for you.  He was innocent and he meant to do good and he really didn't do anything wrong per se.  He was just being a boy.  A part of my heart was stolen the day that sweet boy was born and nobody can take his place.  Call it favoritism, but I call it a special bond between a mother and her son.  I only have one son and I treasure him.

 

I was so proud of him the day he graduated from high school, the day he graduated from boot camp and the day he became a father.  Such milestones in his life that I'm sure he will never forget, at least I hope so. 

 

Isn't that what's life is all about...those milestones we make along the way.  The experiences that chip away the roughness of the stone that build a person.  As I will paraphrase one of my favorite stories about a sculpture, he was a famous sculpture and he chipped and chiseled his stone night and day.  He produced a statue, but really wasn't happy with it.  His friends and family loved it and marveled at it's beauty.  One wise person said that it's not the statue that's the marvel, it's that gem within the stone was always there. You just had to chip away the pieces to find the gem within the rock.

 

I hope I got that message across correctly.  In all of us, my son included, we are all pieces of stone and we all have pure gems inside.  Some of us chip away the pieces much sooner than others and others never chip away the rough edges.  My son, has found his gem, early in his life.  What a wonderful gift. I would like to say I was involved in that, but only in his very early years.  He's done the majority of it all by himself and that is a strong trait to have. 

 

I hope he knows that he should be proud of himself, because pride in yourself isn't selfish or being prude.  It's showing maturity and acceptance that you have come through some pretty rough patches and you are now an outstanding citizen of these crazy United States.  May I add, these crazy United States that he honors and loves dearly.

 

His life is barely begun and he has a long life ahead of him and I am so proud of him.  I love him beyond his years and I hope he knows that.  I hope he knows that he can always call on me day or night in time of need or want.  Right now I may not have much to give monetarily, but my heart is his and so is my soul. 

 

Brian, I love you!

 

I am Debbie and I was here....