I finally got to talk to my soldier!! My constant obsession with Facebook has finally paid off and I got to chat with him for a long time. He's very stressed - I'm sure it's a very difficult adjustment for these guys. My son is infantry and now understands why we wanted him to change his MOS. When all is said and done, I think he'll be able to handle it, but he's one to keep things inside. He thinks by not talking about it he can keep us from worrying, but that's just not the case. I think the general population has a hard time understanding the stress that our soldiers are put through and all that they have to deal with. Unless you've experienced it you can't possibly imagine, so please don't be too quick to judge our troops.

These men and women have given up more than you can possibly imagine. It's hard to even let them go and I get slightly irritated when people tell me they understand because they just packed their child up and sent them off to college. Sorry. Not the same thing. I've had to worry about a kid (two actually) moving out on their own and yes, I did worry, but nothing like this.

So if you believe in a Higher Power, please ask him to keep our troops safe.