A MUST READ

Sometimes, out of the cosmic chaos, questions that we thought could not be answered are brought into alignment with answers that can not be questioned. My
son had written a post yesterday, a very soul searching one, in which he tries to come to terms with how his deployment has changed him into the man he is. It is heartbreaking as a mother to know that I will never fully understand what he will deal with, that I can’t fix things anymore with hugs and kisses. All I can do is listen and love; while those are no small things, they feel so inadequate sometimes.
ArmyWifeToddlerMom links to post by another Army mom, who says everything my heart has known and wanted to say for a few years now, but so much better than I ever could:

“We mothers joke that we would go over and cook, clean and do laundry for our sons and daughters, but the truth is, we would trade places with them in a heartbeat to keep them safe.”

“People -- especially other mothers -- tell me that they can not imagine what that would be like... that they would be a basket case 24 hours a day. Yes, that's it. It's like you live standing on your tippy-toes every day your child is away... and you live on the edge of breathlessness... a mental asthma attack gasping and gasping for strength and sanity and peace of mind. On the outside, we smile bravely and say, "you find the strength." And we do find the strength, but the truth is that we really only find distractions from our worry, our anxiety, our heartache.”
“And mixed with this fear and longing is pride. Indescribable pride for these children of ours. Pride that they made the choice to serve. Pride that they accepted the challenge and met it spectacularly! Pride that they do their jobs under the most extraordinary of circumstances. We often ask ourselves, "Did I raise this person?" "How could I have done things so right?" We know we are blessed to have these spectacular creatures in our lives. “

Read the whole thing. I think the empty spaces and places between a soldier's heart and the mom who loves him just got a little smaller.