See You Later not Goodbye

That handsome young man is Bryan O'Neal. There's no easy way to write about this. I've known Bryan forever. Our families have always been close friends so I've pretty much grown up with him. He attended Pekin schools but he went to Grace so I still saw him quite a bit. He was involved in quizzing and that's where I really got to know him as we grew older. He's my age...just 19 years old. Last September, he went out to California for Marines training. He's only been back a few times since then. And tomorrow, he's going back to California before being deployed to Iraq next Monday (the 14th). I sit here trying to find some words to type that can completely convey how I feel. I'm scared, sad, nervous... I just got home from his going away party where he told me what he'd be doing. I am honestly scared out of my wits. Everything, all the fighting and wars, becomes so much more real when someone you know is being sent to Iraq. Please keep him and his family in your prayers. Hopefully by next March, he'll be back in Cali and by next April, he'll be home again. I'm so proud of him. As we were talking, he never complained about being deployed. He's scared, too, but he knew that it was his choice and he's proud to be serving our country. Amazing. Please, don't forget to pray for our troops.