Of course it's been a mostly sleepless night. We cannot believe that this is real. Being visited by the amazing Army officers we were visited by was a reality jolt. But greeting Elijah when he arrives home here in our community by Lear jet... escorted by and received by Military Honor Guard... that may well be one of the hardest moments... until, well....
The Army is providing escorts for Elijah throughout every step in this process, until our final goodbyes. His body will never be left alone until we say our final goodbyes. The respect and dignity these fine young men display toward our fallen (and their brothers in arms) is most impressive indeed. The Army officer who gave us the news yesterday (accompanied by a chaplain) was so moved (to tears) that it was extremely difficult for him to complete his task. He also told us that he has lost 19 of his men and though he is trained to retain composure in such official tasks as this, he himself was overtaken by grief and overwhelmed.... as were we all.
Elijah's mother and I cannot begin to express to ALL of you how very much your thoughts, prayers, and genuinely shared grief means to us. I have made friends with many of you around one of our favorite subjects, S&W's, and to hear from you again in this thread is moving to me.
We are truly overwhelmed by the outpouring you all have given us, one by one by one adding more and more and more by every hour. Thank you so very much and bless you all.
I have read every post in this thread, several times over and never realized how much it could help to know that so many understand and genuinely care. Thank you all so, so, so very much for taking the time and effort to post here. It means much more to us than you possibly realize. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Sharon asks me to tell you that she knows she going to see Elijah again. She is so heartbroken. Thanks so much.
Don & Sharon