Short jokes

We are so short now we are doing pull ups with staples! All of us are so short we can't even trip! I got a few more, but I won't bore you.

I promise to post everyday now from my computer (God willing and Internet allows) till we leave. Then, once I get my TMobile card back in my Blackjack, I should be able to post from my cell while we travel and I'll make a few posts from some interesting places - again, assuming there are no technology glitches.

Don't miss tomorrows post - we are having our EOT party and this will include the awards presentations. Should be some good photo opportunities!

So, with any luck - you can call ME in a couple of weeks on my cell. I'll be taking a break and visiting my family for a couple weeks. I am very anxious to see all of you and just to be able to "talk" about "normal" stuff again. I'll probably offer the most obscure perspective for a while - :-). I might even bark a few orders for you! :-)

Some people say this deployment has changed them - me? well, I think I have changed a little also - 6 months here will do that to folks. In perspective, you all have probably changed a little too - maybe "grown" is a much better way to say that for me - in a very good way. I've learned a lot, read a lot, prayed a lot, and I've expanded my understanding of several very different cultures - one unlike any other I have seen before - and I've seen quite a few. I also feel very good about my time here. I'm not going to walk away and think I could have done more. Yes, nothing here was perfect, but I believe I did the very best I could. I can tell you I sure TRIED hard every single day. I thought about this motto from the very first day I was here - "Don't count the days, make the days count!" That really stuck with me and I promised myself when I first heard that saying - that is what I was going to do. And - I feel very good about that. If you want to know WHY I wanted to do that, well it's because I believe in my heart God has a plan for all of us - and I sincerely believe He sent me here for a reason - and I certainly didn't want to let Him down. I wanted to do my best every day for Him.

I cannot express how much writing this blog has meant to me also. It gave me strength (seriously) to know so many of you reading love me and are praying diligently for me and the entire team. I assure you I read and appreciated every single comment. I also appreciate the many of you who took time to write cards, letters, and send thoughtful packages packed with love. Thank you all so very much.

I miss you all - it's not over yet and you know me - I'll stay committed to this till the very end when I get a big hug and a kiss from my wife - that's when I'll know this is over.

Then, I'll take just a few days to give thanks and praise, recoup my thoughts, and start the next chapter in my life - I'm sure it will include ALL of you!

Mark.