Day 7: One Day at a Time

My best friend (the not-my-husband one) has told me many times, when I have called her to talk about the expanse of time ahead of me until Ian returns, that I need to take it one day at a time. So, here I am. I have made it through one more day. It really is the best way of thinking about it, because if you think about how long a year is with out the core of your existence, your safe harbor, your best friend, the one person who knows you as well as you do yourself... It becomes very daunting. It seems like it is way too long to go without him. But, if you take it one day at a time, it eases that just a little. It becomes manageable. Today, I got up, went for a morning walk with the kids, actually did my hair, took the kids to get lunch, did laundry, cooked dinner, ate dinner, went to bible study and came home. One day done. One day closer to reunion.

The best part of today was talking to my husband. I was able to tell him about our outstanding phone bill... We were under our allotted amount... Very exciting. He also called early enough that the kids were able to talk to him. They were happy to talk to him, but they are still coping with the separation and are not able to control their feelings with their dad. They told him how much they missed him and the younger two told him they didn't want him to leave in the first place, didn't want him to be gone for a long time, and wanted him to come home. Brutal, right? That was really hard on me, but even harder on my husband. The bad part for me was that I couldn't fix it by being strong. I couldn't comfort my husband by being a strong wife. There was nothing I could do but tell him that they will be ok and that they are still adjusting and coping with it. He said he knows but that it doesn't make it any easier. And that part I knew. I felt helpless. I ended the conversation on a positive note. I told him all that I was going to do tomorrow, some of which benefited him. I reminded him that he can call me whenever... day or night. I told him the best thing for me was hearing his voice, even more so that sleep... I think it worked. :-)

One day at a time. One day at a time. One day at a time. That is all. Just one day at a time. God will help my family and me through this. One day at a time.