proud

A year or two ago, my SIL & I went to a crop in Frankenmuth (the local little bavarian tourist trap town) and had our first encounter with CTMH. We fell in love instantly and I bought several sheets of paper that the consultant had for sale. I was sad to hear that the collection they came from (cocoa cafe) was no longer available, but thrilled she was willing to sell them to me.

I promptly sat down and made this layout of my brother. The photo was taken just before he deployed to Iraq and I am happy to say that he (and his entire unit!) made it home safely. I love the photo of him and I love the fact that the "military wall" that my SIL made sits just over his shoulder. It gives the photo so much more context considering it was taken as our family gathered at his house to say our good lucks (never good byes to a soldier!) before he left.




I titled it "PROUD", subtitled: "my favorite photo of Jeff, taken just before he deployed in 2004".

The journaling may be hard to read since it's handwritten: "Preparing for Jeff to go to Iraq was so difficult. I was sending my brother, but I was also sending my friend. He was so full of conviction - not belief in the war, but belief in himself, belief in his job as a soldier. Every time I see this photo, I'm reminded of that moment - and it makes me so proud of him!"