We visited Nick at Fort Leonard Wood over the weekend and it was quite an eye-opener. He lives in a three-bedroom townhouse and his roommate is Burmese. A very nice young man. Nick seems to enjoy his place and there’s little wonder. He has lots of freedom. A big TV with video games, movies and time to hang out after work. And guys come and go all the time. It reminded me of a frat house. Of course it could use some cleaning, but it’s not bad at all. He seems comfortable and likes it so far.

It’s been a while since I’ve updated but really there hasn’t much been going on with Nick. He’s still stationed at Fort Leonard Wood and working during the days and hanging out at night. We tried to arrange for him to come home for a leave but it just didn’t work out. The Army changed its mind about letting him go. So this weekend, we’re driving to Missouri to see where and how he lives. It should be interesting.

i received a text from Nick this morning stating that he is in driver’s training to operate a Humvee. He said he got his orders and is expected to be deployed to Afghanistan in January 2010. He doesn’t seem too concerned. But we are.

We’ve been keeping in touch with Nick on a regular basis but at this stage of his Army life, it’s become pretty boring for him. He’s comfortable living in his house with his roommates but his job isn’t very demanding. He has had to do 24-hour watches, however.  I suppose this is the lull part of the Army,  between  the training and deployment. He still thinks he’s headed to Afghanistan later this year, which obviously is a concern for us. We knew that was a possibility when he joined, but it’s still worrisome.  In the meantime, we just keep in touch with phone calls and text messages. We hope to see him around Easter.

We spoke to Nick the other day and in the middle of the conversation he said he was being deployed to Afghanistan in October. Of course I thought it was rumor, but he said he heard it from a sergeant. So I assume there’s some truth to it. They’re talking about increasing troops in Afghanistan so it makes sense. And I knew when he enlisted that it was a distinct possibility. But still.

We picked up Nick from the airport on Christmas morning. He stayed four days and headed back to Missouri. It was a nice visit. But, at the same time, he was eager to get back. Turns out he really likes being on his own. Being an 18-year-old with his own place and some freedom is pretty exciting for him. Still the holidays were better with him around. He made it to both family’s gatherings and one of his gifts was a videocamera. He said he needed it for when he gets deployed. Great.

Nick called the other day to say he is settling into his new home and has two roommates. The first thing he did was buy a TV. A 46-inch, HD, flat-screen TV. So my initial reaction was something along the lines of “are you crazy?!” He knew I’d react like that so he prepared himself. And he reassured me that he would be able to store it if and when he gets deployed. He said he was told he is staying at his base for at least a year. I know he hasn’t spent much of his earnings, but still.  Did he have to get such a huge  TV? It makes me nervous. I don’t want him throwing his money around. On the other hand I feel he deserves to spend some of his earnings. I supposed I should have been more excited, but my initial reaction in big purchases is always concern. Besides I only have a 32-inch TV.

We took Nick to the airport Sunday and sent him back to Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. He landed safetly and called us from base to say all is well. But something happened at the airport that really caught my interest. Nick was wearing his uniform and as we walked through the terminal I kept hearing “thank-you.” It’s so busy and loud I didn’t make a connection until about the third one when I spotted Nick nodding his head to the person. Then it dawned on me that they were thanking him.  He said it happens all the time. I was pleased and surprised and proud all at once. They were actually thanking my son. I wondered if he realizes how important that is. As we continued to walk I made it a point to notice people’s reaction as we passed them. One man clearly said thank you for your service. And all the while Nick just acknowledged them with a smile or a nod. I thought it was really cool. We continued to walk toward his gate and were passing one of those moving walkways. It was moving in the opposite direction of us. Nick was on my left so I was watching people in that direction to see how many more would say something to him. But out of the corner of my eye, I could see something that I won’t forget soon. It happened fast but it was unmistakable. As we strolled past the moving walkway there was a little girl. She was no more than 6 or 7 years old and she could barely see about the handrail.  But she was facing us as she rode by. And as she passed she was saluting. She didn’t say a word. She just glided past with her little hand on her forehead.

Many people have told me that they were shocked at how much their son or daughter changed after their first few months in the service. I was worried about this because Nick’s personality, I thought, was decidedly not military-like. Since he’s been home, however, it’s like he never left. He is completely the same. I barely notice any changes. He still teases the dog, still laughs at the same dumb jokes and still loves to quote “Simpsons” and “Family Guy.” But that doesn’t mean he’s not dedicated to the Army. I feel he is totally committed. He just has been able to keep the two separate. Of course that can change if he’s deployed, which is a distinct possibility. But for now, we’re taking things one step at a time.

Now that Nick’s been home for more than a week, we’ve been trying to arrange schedules with everyone so we can see each other.  It’s been working out well and my sister and her husband visited from Kentucky. He’ll be home for Thanksgiving and he’s now arranging it so he will come home for a few days at Christmas. During his time here, he’s been wanting to eat out as often as possible and I guess he misses that. And there are lots of nights where he’s gone. He has a hard time understand curfew, but I told him we all have jobs and school and he can’t be staying out all night. Midnight on the week days. He’s still 18 and he still must abide by house rules, soldier or no soldier. He’s listening, but he doesn’t like it. Too bad.