The Temperture is Rising!

Dear All,

The time has flown and I extend by deep apologies for my lack of communicating. The past weeks have been my hardest and busiest so far. Loneliness and fatigue hit hard bringing my greatest discouragement. There was even a point that I wanted to throw in the towel and come home but a short conversation with a young soldier brought new strength and conviction. He was greatly discouraged and rightfully so after missing the birth of his first child and the death of his grandfather. He did not have the option of even thinking about throwing in the towel. I knew after talking to him I had to toughen up and focus on moving forward and not on the issues that were weighing me down.

The temperature continues to rise. During the day it is getting up around 112 - 116 degrees. When I turned off my lights last night to go to bed at 2300 it was down to 102 degrees. I have to say that I can not complain as I am inside the center 90% of the time so the little I go out the sun and heat feels wonderful. If I was out in it long and certainly if I was working out in it I would be whining all the way. It is just like I had always heard...it feels like someone is pointing a big hot hot blow dryer at you.

The center continues to thrive and part of what makes it so special is the support it has received from so many of you. Your snacks, children’s books and even prayer squares have been a huge help and greatly appreciated. We have just gone through a rotation change so the faces have changed and we had to say goodbye to many that were regulars in the center. It is always sad to say goodbye but always a thrill knowing they are going home to their families.

We have a great group of volunteers right now that are there every day all day long helping. They leave here for good in just a few days. They have already passed their responsibilities on to their replacements and are just waiting to leave. The timing could not be more perfect as both of my co workers are on R&R. Two directors from Kuwait came and that has been nice. One has returned to Kuwait and the other is still here. She has been a delight and given me all sorts of new ideas of things we can be doing in the center. That has been so fun and I look forward to continuing these fun interactive activities.

The United Through Reading Program continues to be my joy. We filmed 548 last month and will come close this month also. Due to our staff being gone I have had to cancel several of the remote UTR days that I do. That makes me sad as I know how these particular troops appreciate and depend on that time. The books have continued to arrive and I smile through and through when the troops walk in the UTR room and go WOW look at all the books. Your faces come to mind and I always tell them about you and your love for them. A couple of weeks ago a young soldier came in and asks if we had any way he could record a message to his grandmother. He shared that he had just received word that Hospice had come in and her days were few. We were thrilled to set him up in the UTR to record. He was able to tell his grandmother how special she was in his life and say his goodbyes. The blessing is she did receive it and get to see it before she stepped into glory. It was such a help to this young man to be able to do this.

One of our Air Force dads told us his little girl was so excited about her DVD she took it to school and showed her class and took it to Sunday school and to gymnastics and to her ballet class. She was proud to show it to everyone. Another Military mom told me that her daughter hugs the TV when her mom reads to her. She now hugs the TV every time she passes it and say “I love you, Mommy”. Thanks to all of you this program thrives.

Thank you all for being so patient with me as I move through this incredible journey. The joy of being here with and for these troops blesses me over and over again. The personal hurdles I have faced in recent weeks are nothing when compared to the joys deep in my heart from serving here in this place.

I love you all dearly and am so grateful for your support.
Strong in His Mighty Grip,
Linda