Hello, Everybody!
Today is a special day for my cousin, Sgt. Keith Matthew Freeman—it’s his 48th Birthday.
If y’all recall, I mentioned in a blog post dated May 31, 2013 that my Cousin Keith returned home for good, after serving five years in Afghanistan. The special thing about the aforementioned date is the fact that he came home just in time to see his daughter/my cousin Erica Denise graduate from high school. I still get chills everytime I think about that principal asking Cousin Erica to approach the stage and close her eyes, and here comes my Cousin Keith bursting through the curtains. I’ll never forget the look of shock, surprise, appreciation, and overwhelming loss of words that Cousin Erica had on her face when she saw her daddy—they probably hugged each other for about ten minutes or so.
And the joy that was shared among those of us who witnessed this special moment… WOW!!!
Here’s a little bit of trivia as it relates to how everything worked out like it did: Cousin Keith and Erica’s high school principal are best friends, so upon putting two and two together, it made absolutely perfect sense. Check this out, y’all: Neither Great Aunt Reesie nor Cousin Jade knew that Cousin Keith would be coming home, but it’s all good, and my family is whole once again!
Cousin Keith told me—quite candidly—that while he does suffer from PTSD, the ailment has not fully enveloped him. He boldly declared that his motivations for surviving overseas were his faith in God, coupled by the faith that one day he would see us again. He also told me that, in order to keep pressing on, he would occasionally observe three items in his wallet: a picture of his family, a card reciting all of Psalm 27, and a coupon from Wendy’s.
In closing this blog post, all I’ve gotta say is:
Happy Birthday, Sgt. Cousin—and welcome back home, one mo’ ginn!
Hugs & Kisses,
Natasha
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