236

Today is the 236th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. And today I am honored and absolutely blessed to be a marine wife.

I saw the Birthday run on Cherry Point today. There were about 2000 marines running in it and the line was a mile long. When we saw them coming down the street, everyone in the store went outside to cheer our marines on. We waved and whistled and clapped and it was just so amazing to see them, and to hear them shouting their cadences. It was the most motivating thing I've seen in a long time. I wasn't just amazed by the marines in the run, I was more thankful that I work in a place where we stop what we are doing and pay our respects to the marines that we serve. That those guys that we know by name, look at the troop store on that run, and see the girls who sell them their breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, smiling and clapping for them. And how many other places will hand them their change back and say "Happy Birthday, marine," on November 10th? Yeah. Not many.

Anyway, seeing and hearing our marines brought tears to my eyes and I couldn't help but think about how much I longed to see Jordan's face among the formations. I had a break-down. It was brief, but it was real, and then I got over it. One of the good things about being a marine wife is that when you fall down, you learn how to pick yourself back up. It's part of enduring.

Happy Birthday to all the Marines in my life. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday.