THE AFGHANISTAN CONNECTION

In closing yesterday's blog, I mentioned that my oldest son Michael had just started a 3 month deployment in Afghanistan. This is a voluntary assignment that Mike accepted as part of his job with the National Security Agency (NSA). When I talked with him right before he left the states, he explained without a lot of specifics, that his mission had to do with advance planning for the eventual U.S. exit from that country. Naturally, any significant news coming out of Afghanistan is now more than just a blip on my radar screen.

Since Mike retired from the U.S.Army as a Military Intelligence Officer a few years ago, he first contracted with a company, and did a similar job that he had performed while on active duty in the Army. About a year ago, he decided to apply for a permanent federal government position under the umbrella of the NSA, and his position now carries a lot more responsibility. Because his job has always been at the highest security level, I've never known a lot of details about what he does, but I do know that his expertise often requires a presence in front of top military commanders for briefings and counsel.

While talking yesterday with my youngest son Marc, he told me that he had been online with his brother, and he learned that Mike's accommodations consisted of a converted storage container, and that the temperature was hovering just above 0 degrees. Perhaps that's a little better than a tent in real cold weather, but not much.

Patty and I cheerish the time we had with my two sons and their families on our recent Caribbean Cruise. I have a lot of pride in my kids accomplishments, and will be counting the days until Mike returns to the good ole U.S. of A.