Day 4: Logic Has Taken A Vacation
The first week is the hardest. The first week is the hardest. I just keep telling myself that. We are now into day 4, and still no word. We all know, my everyday patience threshold is almost nil. So the fact that I’ve gone this long without screaming in a mad fit, is proof that I’m a different woman when he deploys. Though I’m getting a bit…ok ALOT antsy. At least I have coffee today. That’s some comfort. Logically I know I can’t expect what we had last deployment. The most I went was 3 days, and that was during the dreaded communication blackouts. The strangest thing is…I’m always tempted to send him a text. But his cell phone is sitting here with me. And I know this! But the temptation is still there. Logic took a vacation.
The poor dogs. Noone talks about how family pets deal with deployment. Our big white Malamutt, hasn’t figured it out yet. He’s really confused. every day, between 5 and 7pm, when he hears a car, he runs to the door and waits, our German Shepherd follows suit. When the door doesn’t open, he goes to the sink, stands on his back legs and looks out the window. He can see the truck in the driveway. So he goes back to the door…then back to the sink, until I go get him and bring him back to the living room. He’s so bonded to Hubby it’s unbelievable. He made me cry the first time he did it. This isn’t something he’s done when Hubby was gone for short times like schools and training. That tells me, he knows this is different. He’ll get it figured out eventually, but it’s really sad watching him right now. He’s also acting out a bit. Just like a young child would. Pushing to see how much he can get away with. The challenge there is simply using the “nothing in life is free” approach. If he wants attention, he has to sit calmly, same goes for feeding, and going out. You do not want a 100 pound dog being pushy and obnoxious.
They should totally include pets in briefings, they’re family too!
Hope you hear from him soon…just want you to know I’m thinking about you.