Military Life In My Eyes

Chapter 4

          Everything was great! The school year went super fast and finally Chad was graduating. We were engaged! There was nothing to be sad about, infact Chad was moving in with me for a month before he was to head to basic training. I knew a month wasnt much time and that it too would pass by so fast.  I had to be strong for Chad because I knew he didnt want to leave me. I didnt want him to see me cry or see me worry about him going through basic training. That was the hardest thing for me to do, to hide my emotions, to stay strong for Chad. During that month before Chad had to leave, my family took Chad all around Colorado. We went to places he had never been to before. 

        It was the night before I had to drop Chad off in Denver. It was a bitter sweet  night. I was so thankful to be able to sit in his arms and feel his heart beat. As I sat there in his arms that night, I couldnt help but let the tears flood my eyes and gently dance down my cheeks. I hid my face in his chest, hiding those tears that fell. I didnt want the night to end but I knew he had to go to make a better futuer for the both of us. He had to go to learn to fight for the freedom thats not so free. It was his dream and I knew I'd have to be his bigest support then and forever after. So many thoughts rolled through my mind like a kite stuck in a thunderstorm. That night I didnt sleep well at all. That morning I woke up and made everyone breakfast. I let Chad sleep in because I knew he wouldnt get that juxery where he was going. We had a cup of coffee together and then we took the hour long drive into Denver. When we got to the hotel room he was staying at for the night I didnt want to get out of the car, simply because I didnt want to cry and I didnt want to see him cry. 

        The next eight weeks were the most difficult days of my life simply because I couldn't talk to Chad as much as I wanted to. We went from texting every single day every moment we possibly could, to sending letters every chance we got. Before Chad went to basic, writing a letter wasn't something I thought of doing. When I finally realized that that was the only way Reagan appealed to talk, I didn't want to stop writing when I started. I'd write a letter every morning and send it out to him, at the same time I wait all day just to get one single letter from him. Getting not one single letter in the mail made the world stop just for a little while. It made me realize that you can't take things for granted you know you get a texting and Skype in things like that and you couldn't do that when he was when Chad was in basic I knew how hard it was for me to watch him leave but I know I had to be the strong one. I knew that no matter how hard it was for me it was 20 times harder for him. Not because he had to leave me behind, but because he had leave everyone behind. At times when he was in basic and I was just sitting there the tears would fall in my heart ached. I found myself looking for more and more things for me to do. Luckily I got to work at a farmers market, and help out up at the farm. I'd wake up super early in the mornings and set out in the cornfield behind the farmhouse and I'd write letters to Chad and I'd send them all at once. The days were long but every time I got a letter it made everything better. I remember getting letters from Chad and he was so excited to be a learned something new into be doing something that he felt worth while but at the same time it was hard on him. I think he said that he hated basic just as much as he had said that he loved. To this day I've kept every single one of his letters that he sent me and he's kept all of mine. I did what I could to show my support to Chad even though I knew that wasn't much. I wanted to do so much more for him. I wanted to send him little treats, but I wasn't allowed to

        When he finally got through basic the adventure wasn't over. He didn't get to come home and that really hurt. I know I had to be strong for him because I knew he was the filling his dream. After basic was a couple months of tech school for him. Tech school wasn't near as difficult as basic was simply because I did get a Skype Chad and I did get to actually talk to him a whole lot more. It was still hard though, every time we Skype I wished so much that he was right there with me. We still wrote letters throughout tech school. I still work to the market while he was in tech school just to keep myself a little more occupied when I couldn't talk to him.

After for what seemed forever Chad graduated from basic and Tech. I had worked so hard and save all of my money so I could come and see Chad graduate. All of the money that I earned while he was in basic and in tech was gone so fast. But it was worth it because I got to see the love in my life. I was so proud of Chad and I was so excited to see him. We only got to spend three days together and then he had to get back to fulfilling his dream. Christmas time cameand there is a promise that Chad was getting it come home. We ended up going to where his family lived for Christmas. It was the first time that I flew on a plane by myself and I was terrified. I was so excited to see Chad that I didn't even care about how scared I was. We spent Christmas and the new year together and then we had to get onto separate planes. His plane left first. My plane didn't leave till that night. Chad's father gave me one of the best Christmas present ever and I'm so thankful that his his family took me to go see my sister. My sister and I were separated when I was born we were taken away from my mom. I never got a chance to see my sister so the first time in 20 years I got to hug my. It was a bittersweet day, because I had to say goodbye to Chad but at the same time I say hello to someone that I had never gotten to see before.