Black Hawk Down

A Black Hawk helicopter went down last night -- all eleven on board missing and presumed lost. And even though my son is now safely ensconced in the tedium of academia -- finishing up his teacher credentialing and preparing for graduate school in the fall -- the deep muscle-memory of the years he was on active duty as a Black Hawk crew chief ... first in Iraq and then in Afghanistan ... rose up unbidden to make my stomach lurch and my heart clutch at the news.

And the relief that my son is not -- at this moment -- in harm's way was quickly trumped by the grief that the same is not true for eleven other mothers. Families. Loved ones. So please -- join me in lifting them up in your prayers. Giving thanks for their lives. And then redoubling our efforts to make this a world where nobody's son or daughter puts their life in jeopardy every single day because we've finally achieved the swords into plowshares thing. Thanks!