deadcarjoe's Profile

Special moment. March 13, 2009. Why you ask? Because my son graduated from Boot Camp from the US Marine Corp from the MCRD in San Diego, California. Very Proud Mom! Was the hardest 13 weeks I as a mom ever had to go through, not seeing him for that long, when he is your only son, and your life. See as the story goes, I found out he joined by employees at work, since he and I worked at the same place. That day I found out from them I called him immediately-his reply "Yes I joined and I leave in 30 days!" I just fell to my knees and cried. He knew sometime before that but didn't know how to tell me as he knew I would fall apart. Well that got shorted by alot a few days later, as he got a message from his recruiting officer that his date got moved up, he was leaving in 3 days! He was leaving me before Christmas instead of after and I had only 3 days left with a son who had been my life. We cried, we hugged, we spent what time we could together, when he wasn't with his friends. My Nephew(from my exhusbands side) was up on leave from the Army, we are tight too--just to put it in the light abit, he at the age of 8 has had a personal house key to my house and the door is aways open--he is now 28. He stayed and helped keep me together for 2 weeks after my son left as he was on leave from just getting back from Afganistan. The night before he left my son and nephew gave me my Christmas present before he left--It was tickets to the Celine Dion Concert which was on Dec. 18th--four days after his departure. See he knew for the past few years her music has kept me alive and help me cope with serious pain as I have 12 disks in my back and neck stricken with second and third stage of degeneration. He spent the last money he had which cost him over $400 to send me and my roommate to the concert because he knew that it was my dream before I die to see her in concert. My only other dream is to make it to Disneyland and see Mickey before I can no longer enjoy it! See he knew I wouldn't do anything stupid before that day, and by then maybe I could cope with him leaving for the Marines. It gave me something to look forward to--kept me alive! He knew if he could get me through the first few days and with Dennis staying by me I would get through it. Well I did and the concert was a lifesaver. The only gift he got from me that Christmas was the letter I slipped into his little bag that he took with him on the plane that he read once gone. A letter that he carried with him the time in boot camp--said it helped him get through the hard times. The hardest-saddest letter I ever had to write. Back to the story--December 14th was a heartbreaker, cried for days, waited by the phone, til I got that phone call almost two days later, that was the minute phone call you get when your son makes it to boot camp and is offically a Marine, and you won't hear from them again for weeks! It is a prewritten phone call, that says basically, I made it here, I love you, and don't know again when we will talk. For the next thirteen weeks, I went without food, entertainment, whatever it took, to save enough money to be able to go to that graduation. To help get each other through that time- I would write him alot and send pictures and inspirational quotes on his letters to help give him a smile and help him through too, and he would write when he could. Graduation finally came--I was never so driven to drive basically 2,200 miles just to be there for a less than an hour ceremony. Granted we got to spend 4 hours with my son the day before on Parent's Day but the feeling of him graduating a US Marine, a parent couldn't be any prouder. Was funny though, I was so close to Walt Disney and couldn't afford to go--by the time we made it to graduation I had less than 50 bucks in my pocket--thank God, my son had the money to get us home, which we left right after graduation that afternoon. What a drive home-we left San Diego on Friday afternoon and made it back to Minneapolis by sunrise on that Sunday morning. What a parent won't do for their kids! I would do it again too-- Actually I did too--when he was at Fort Wood in Missouri doing his schooling for Military Police, I drove down there to pick him up for the 4th of July weekend for a 4 day pass cause he needed the freedom, then again for his graduation on July 23rd. And for that graduation which was about an hour, I had to leave him there and drive home empty handed as the Marines were flying him home--not allowed to go home with parent. So three times down to Missouri in a 3 week period just because I love my son, to let him know how proud I am of him, and to let him know that a parent will always be there no matter what!!!! I did get to bring all of his things home in the car and all his friends stuff home on that last trip--so guess you could of called me the baggage lady on the last trip. Was well worth it though! Would do it again for him in a hearbeat! That's my moment-thanx 4 listening.