Flashback Friday

Us.Summer 1995, on Carl's "winging" day, Pensacola Florida. In the Marines, it was the day you graduated flight school and earned your golden wings. I got a pair too...on a chain around my neck. I hardly ever wear them now, but I earned them! I helped him study, (I can still remember the steps to free yourself from a crashing T-34 training jet..."Condition Lever to Off, T-handle pull, eject".) We'd just found out we were headed to CA and that Carl would be flying CH53 Super Stallion (the biggest and safest helicopter in the Marines). Most of our friends from that time still fly 53's and are still in the Marines and here we are, so many years away from that day, so many things we'd have to conquer and wade through...5 years of infertility to come, 5 moves across the country, lots of goodbye's and farewells, many lifelong friends made, trails blazed and paths found...in the Air Force now, 1 kid instead of 4, different places than we thought, different paths,spiritual ah-moments and awakenings, least of all- gray hair, wrinkles, slowing metabolisms,aching joints, failing eyesight,extra pounds, BUT blessed indeed ...wish we'd known then what we know now...which is that it was the BEST for our family.