Thanks so much for you support, encouragement and prayers. I have made a list of all of your workout recommendations and am going to order something today.
Lynda, thanks from the frozen pea idea, I'm going to try that!
Shopgirl, I will check out the Body For Life program and I do think my daughter would love to join me.
Kim, we are right with each other and I would love to keep in touch. YOU are not alone!
Now, I hope you guys don't mind me sharing a letter from my husband. I was snooping through his email and found a letter he sent to my niece that made me cry.... I'm sure not everyone will agree politically but you got to be proud to be an American when you read this:
I first want to thank you for taking the time to sit down and write out a heartfelt message. I do want to reassure you that I am taking care of my men and myself the best I know how. I want you to know, and everyone for that matter, that there are things in life that are even more important than life itself. Freedoom, liberty, and the right to think for yourself are ideas that have to be earned by a nation, and that can be very costly. The more it cost, the more precious they are. Even more costly is the task of protecting those freedoms and liberties that everyone in our country benifits from, regardless of how ungrateful or naive they may be. I want you also to know that I believe with all my heart, in what I'm doing, and that these ideas are worth fighting for. There are those in this world who will do whatever it takes to destroy who we are and what we stand for. There are those who are killing innocent Iraqis in hopes of de-railing our efforts to establish a democracy within these oppressed poeple. Be proud to be an American. Never let anybody get away with telling you that we do not have a great country with freedoms and liberties and responsibilities that are unparrelled in world history. Never let anybody bad-mouth our efforts to bring freedom and justice to a people who have been tortured, exploited and murdered for 30 years. Be a compassionate American, one who extends a helpful hand to the less fortunate. Be a strong American, one who is willing to confront tyranny and oppression with the strength that our country can muster. Be a strong and good leader in the Lord.
Look around you. Look at your friends. What will they become? I say there are 3 kinds of people in our country...there are the sheep, who are 98% of the people in our country. They will do what the news, or there political indoctrination has trained them to do-to follow. Then there are the 1% who are the wolves. They will feed off the sheeps of the world. They cause misery, pain and take every advantage of the sheeps weaknesses. The final 1% are the sheep-dogs. They are the protectors of our society. They are caretakers. They are the ones who realize that a society has to have law and order. A country has to have people who are willing to understand that there are ideals in life, that are more important than oneself. They are the firefighters, the cops, the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines. They are nurses, mothers and paramedics. They are the ones who feel so compelled with taking care of human lives that they are willing to sacrifice their own in order to accomplish that. What a powerful idea! Without these people, who would catch the rapist? Who would put out the fire? Who would cure the sicknesses? Who would march to war, and remove a murderer, a wolf in leaders clothes? This is a moment in our countries history that is as every bit important as Granpa Hughes felt when he marched off to war as a young Marine in the Pacific. He fought the wolves. What courage that took! He was not a sheep, he was not a wolf, he was a protector of our liberties and freedoms. He was a sheepdog. Now, once again, look around you. Ask yourself what the people around you are doing, but more importantly, what do you see yourself being? You have such a wonderful future ahead of you. Always be true to yourself. Know the truth, at all costs, even if it is the most painful experience of your life. Be willing to stand up for the down-trodden. Never take for granted your freedoms and liberties that others have died for. Take to task anybody who is willing to bad-mouth our country-and ask them what their plan is. Ask them if they are prepared to sacrifice for the freedoms that we all enjoy to make this a better world. You will find that a lot of Americans do not have a fighting spirit. They lack the backbone to fight for ideals that do not add up to money. There are a lot of sheep out there.
I know this is pretty heavy stuff. I am actually in the finest period of my life so far. I have so much to be thankful to the good Lord. I wake up every day and count my blessings. It is hard on Melissa and the kids. And it is hard on me too. But there is one idea that is even more important than what I have discussed above. An ideal that has been passed to us and is what I consider that greatest gift to man, and that is Love. Melissa and the kids know that my love for them is so great that even the destruction of war cannot compare. I know that out of all this, we are building an even greater appreciation for the gifts that God has given us. Out of all this, our love is growing deeper and deeper. Once again, thank you for showing your concern and love. Take care and be strong!!!
