I hadn’t seen my friend Rebecca for almost 25 years, since she married Daniel and moved to a small town in Germany where he was an officer in the U.S. military.

A couple of years ago he retired and they moved to New Mexico. We had always stayed in touch by letter and occasional phone calls. Now we were delighted to be able to actually talk more frequently.

Last winter here in the Midwest we got hit really hard, and Rebecca kept inviting my husband and me to come stay with them for a few weeks, but Chad couldn’t get away from work. However, I free-lance, and could get away, and he insisted there was no reason why I shouldn’t. And in short order I found myself on a plane winging toward the sunny Southwest.

I was seated next to a handsome young marine on his way home after a two-year deployment in the Middle East.... Read More