Reasons, but no excuses

Time flies.  When you enjoy what you do, and enjoy writing, you start a blog.  Its okay that no one likely reads it, because writing is cathartic, and maybe someday, if blogs haven't fully gone the way of the 8-Track, my progeny may enjoy reading it.  It never occurs to you that there may come a time when you go all Frozen and "Let it go".  But I did.  I can offer you no excuses, but there are some reasons.

I made it back from Afghanistan just fine.  The homecoming was AWESOME.  There is no point in trying to use words to describe coming back to your family after a year of being gone.  As a Reservist, it is more than just returning to family, it is returning to your life.  A news crew came, as did friends, family, and coworkers all waiving flags and signs and applauding because I successfully walked off a plane.  Hugs and smiles abounded, but little did I know at that point that it would be one of the last times that my father and I would embrace one another.  If only I had known.  19 days later, my father passed away.  The plan for "reintegration" was gone.

The next 7 months were a blur.  Funeral, family, dinners, memorials, Christmas, New Year, school starting up again, figuring out insurance, and bills, Social Security, learning how to take care of mom, and trying to re-connect with my wife and kids in the process.  Oh yeah, I also went back to work as a prosecutor.  I barely manage silly Facebook posts, let alone a more substantial blog post.  Believe it or not, we're still not done with the fallout of deployment and Dad. God's grace and provision have abounded.

So, I'm back and hope to find a way forward.  It takes awhile to re-build a full caseload, but there have already been some highlights.  You really can't make this stuff up.  

Apologies for the non-post, but I wanted to get something up by way of explanation.  With dad's passing, I've likely lost 30% of my audience.  Its time to start again.