my heavy heart .... and getting chocolate wasted....

The last two weeks have been busy.... my heart has been very heavy for two friends. 

I'm such a 'fixer'.... It is how I show my love to my friends and family. I give, and I fix.... I am not an eloquent speaker, nor a vivid writer....but I will show up with your favorite things and do whatever I can to help....

A dear friend lost her husband a few days after Christmas. This makes two amazing men {I have known} that have lost their lives as they transitioned into civy life. As a prior military wife - you always prepare for what might happen while your loved one is deployed....but to see someone complete 6, 7, or 8 deployments... knowing that they are SPEC OPS and will be the first ones in, or have the craziest missions... to watch them come home and try to return to a normal life... and then lose them? That friends, is hard to watch... hard to understand... hard to accept. I would like to ask for this amazing family to be in your prayers, thoughts, and hearts. A few friends have set up a fund for the three boys that are left behind. I have donated and plan to continue donating. 

I am in the process of creating a classroom bundle with a few other bloggy buddies - all the proceeds will go into the Granger boys' fund. So - please check back if you would like to help this family!

The third stanza of the Ranger Creed states, "Never shall I fail my comrades." 

The family left behind - I will not fail - It is my duty to make sure that I do all I am able to help, just as they would if the situation were reversed. It is hard to explain the bond I have with many of these women....we've been through so much in such a short period of time. Although I am not married to my soldier anymore, I will not forget the time that was mislaid, the service that was given, the lives that have been lost...

My other dear friend just passed the one year mark of losing her baby girl. She blogs about it here. We had a girls weekend... 

with a late night trip to Lulu's Chocolate Bar.... 

I did get chocolate wasted.... :)

There are so many times that I wish I was able to take others' pain and suffering... to make their burden easier to handle. I have not figured out how to make suffering a loss easier, I wish that one day I will be able to help.... but for now - I pray - and do what I can.