He's Gone...

On Sunday, our pastor asked the youth group to come up and gather around our family and pray. I was in the middle of it, so I couldn't see, but my friend said that it was a beautiful sight; about 75 kids came forward.

This morning we got up, and as promised, our city put flags up and down our street. My sister-in-law, who's only been in America for a year, said that she started to cry as soon as she saw them. She and her family were the first guests of the day - coming to tell our boy good-bye.

It occured to us that not everyone in our town would know why the flags were up. So at 8:30 I called the local sign company, and by 9:30 they had printed a banner reading with our son's name and "'Mayberry's' Newest Navy Recruit. God Bless You." My dad hung it from our front porch.

The cake arrived at 10:00. "Fair Winds and Following Seas", it said, and had the Navy seal modified with our son's name.

Our neighbor across the street is a veteran. He sent for my son, and have him an old silver dollar. I tried to keep it at the house, but our boy wanted it in his wallet. A glimmer of sentimentality. maybe?

Upstairs, we had already cleaned the bathroom, but as I glanced in the door, a wet towel was on the floor, and his clothes were on the counter. They're still there.

At 11:30 the first of the guests came. A neighbor. Then more neighbors, then a lady I do some work with. Four of our pastors. Family. Friends. More people than I expected. It's a beautiful day, and we milled around in the yard and on the porch, drank coffee and watched the Senior year tribute DVD I made for our boy. Our younger boys and a cousin came home from school. My husband came home from work. We cut the cake. The newspaper came. All to tell our boy good-bye, and to wish him well.

At 12:30, a US Government car pulled into the driveway.

The house is quiet now. Our oldest never made it home from college. The party guests have gone home. The youngest went back to school. The third went out to eat. My husband returned to work.

And that other boy - our second born - they took him away.