CHRISTMAS IN A BOX

Just prior to deployment my son had to tell his little boy that Daddy wouldn't be home for Christmas. He had an Army job to do. That little four year old boy was zeroed in on that fact...

When my grandson came to my house the next time that's all he wanted to talk about...the fact that Daddy was going to be gone a long, long time and not be home at Christmas or for his birthday.

I had a thought. I said, "Do you remember when you lived far from Nana and you couldn't be here at Christmas last year? What did we do?" His eyes lit up. He said, "You MAILED my presents! And I liked getting presents in the mail!" 

 Uh huh....now he's thinking. "I bet we can mail Daddy's presents to him!" Yep...now we're on the right track. His spirits lifted and he immediately started to think about what to put in a box to mail to Daddy for Christmas....leggos, robots, cars. :)

There's a lot of love that goes into a box. Material things matter to our men and women who need them, but it's the love in there that matters most.  Love can be felt from a family member who made cookies, but it can also be felt from a total stranger who chose YOU to send a box to...

Little tokens of appreciation go a long, long way when one is off doing military work in far off places. Little pieces of home keep one connected. Attached. Remembered.

Today we are so fortunate to have the technology we do in keeping connected with ones serving overseas or elsewhere out of reach. I can't help but reflect on my grandparents and great grandparents during their children's service eras. Waiting for months at a stretch to hear anything from their children had to be exhausting! I have letters from WWII written by my great uncles to their mother (my great grandmother). Most of them reflect how lonely they were - longing to hear a word from home. I simply cannot imagine....today I can hop on the computer and jot my son a message. It might take a few days for him to respond, but he usually does. I am so very grateful for that!

Let's not allow facebook or the internet to replace handwritten letters from home. It's something tangible from a loved one that they can hold, feel, look at, and keep. 

So, send a box to someone overseas this Christmas. There are plenty of organizations out there you can support through if you don't have a specific soldier currently deployed to mail one to.

Jot a personal handwritten note to include in your box...it will mean the world to one far from home.

You will be surprised at how many people would be willing to help if asked. In the past month we have shipped six care packages to our son's unit to share and have four more ready to send. All boxes include donated items from our church and others that we've tossed in with our own purchases. To date all boxes have had shipping fees donated!

It's a terrific experience to see who helps in what way. It's humbling and it's amazing....and we are ever grateful! I have never laid eyes on the people my son serves with...but I feel like they are some of "my own" in this journey. And I will continue to bake them cookies until they all come home....

 LCain