Walk a mile in our shoes

A friend of mine stopped me after choir practice and told me that reading Love You More Than You Know helped her better understand what her sisters were going through when her two nephews served in Iraq.  She said so much of what she heard from her sisters was exactly what many of the stories in the book described…from constant prayers, wearing medals of saints, not watching the news, to saving voice messages and emails from their sons and daughters–all done in an effort to cope daily. My friend wished she would have had more compassion for her siblings as they went though their journeys with their sons. She told me how she admires the strength of all these mothers and their sons and daughters at war. My friend now thinks of all of these women as her sisters.  Not only are all of these mothers our sisters, but their children belong to all of us too. I hope that those who read the book will better understand the sacrifices our troops and their families make for all of us. Join me in praying for the safety of all of our troops and for the peace and comfort of their families, until all of our servicemen and woman are safely home.

Best Birthday Present

Today was the grand finale!!! Michael came home for lunch and found a package at his door. He wasn’t too surprised though bccause it’s his birthday today so he figured I had mailed a gift. Well guess what??? He was stunned!!! I’m telling you he called me and couldn’t believe it when he opened the book up to where I had a leather bookmark embossed with a cross. In gold cursive it read: To Michael, Love Mom…and the cross at the bottom. He quickly saw Hanks picture and started to read.Long story short, he said he never imagined getting a gift so amazing. He said if anyone would have even asked, he would have never thought about something so meaningful. And best of all, coming from his dear mom. He said “Good Job Mom, I’m very proud of you”. Being the entrepreneur he is, this gets him so motivated. People like you and all of us moms taking the time to “think out of the box”. He wants to meet you someday to thank you personally for accepting my Essay and to acknowledge all the hard work you put into this book. So you can imagine his enthusiasm for you, Mary Anne and all who helped make this a success. He understands the commitment needed to accomplish what you and Mary Anne and the Moms have done. I sure would love to have you meet my wonderful son. He’s a true Catholic first and Patriot second.

Love and God Bless,

Mary

My Story: Marie Kleps

Seeing my son leave…dressed in his fatigues, heading towards dangerous territory in Iraq…trying to hold onto him one last time with  hugs and kisses… having to let go so he can serve and defend our country to the best of his ability and give freedom to others …was heart wrenching … I wanted to protect him like I always had, but now it was time to let him go.  He had to leave the vice like grip of his Mother’s arms around him.  I watched him walk away…so proud, so strong, so brave …all the while my heart was breaking under all the pressure of possibly never seeing him again.