If you happen to have read this post about where we will be moving next, you will recall that the prospects for an excitingly awesome new duty station were looking grim.
We spent a few weeks thinking about what we wanted to ask for and devising a plan and then this past Friday Matt sent an email to his branch manager with his request. The plan was simple. Matt would sell his soul to the devil in order to get a duty station other than the ones the branch manager had previously offered. We were willing to have Matt do an unaccompanied tour in one of many unpleasant places in order to have a chance to get to one of our stations of choice when he returned. It was a risky move. Perhaps life in Texas or North Carolina would be better than volunteering for an unaccompanied tour? But we made our decision. We felt good about it. We were ready to get this ball rolling.
The email was short and sweet.
"Sir, I'll do anything you want me to do short of giving up my right arm if you don't send me to one of those less than wonderful duty stations. I really pretty please with sugar on top want to go to Fort Lewis, Hawaii or Fort Carson."
Next step. We wait.
We figured it would be a few days at least before getting a reply but it ended up being a few hours.
Matt got the email on his work Blackberry and raced upstairs to tell me.
The conversation went like this.
"He responded"
"No way"
"Yes he did"
"What is it?"
"Fort Lewis"
"Not cool. Don't mess with me"
"I'm serious"
"You're mean"
"I'm not kidding"
"Really?"
It went like this for a few seconds until Matt just let me read the email.
And this is where I start to cry.
There was nothing official about the email so we were cautiously excited. We told Tom and Mika and then spent the next few days talking about all the things that we were excited for. We didn't tell the boys or anyone else because we feared that the branch manager would suddenly recall that he told us we had to go to one of those other duty stations. Fears were squashed when we received a RFO (request for orders) on Tuesday.
While this is still the Army and things can change, an RFO is the next best thing to actual Orders.
The branch manager didn't originally see a spot for Matt in Fort Lewis, but I think God opened his eyes a little and revealed a great job for him there.
About 16 years ago Matt began his military career as an E2 at Fort Lewis, Washington. A year later we were married and made our first home there. In the past 15 years we have made our home in 6 additional duty stations, met wonderful people from all over the world, lived a life we never dreamed of, and in about 10 months we will make our way back to Washington, back to where we started, to finish off our military career and pave the way for life after the Army.
I simply could not be more grateful for the places God has taken us and for the plans He has for our future.
Comments