Who's got two two thumbs, misread the race information and missed the five-mile race that she was looking forward to? Yo, this girl!

I was really excited about running an event on post. It was close to my house. I had trained for it. I felt that I was ready. I had been in contact with my sitter, and she was prepared to be at my house early. I had picked out a cute outfit (because that is really what this is all about, right?) and my shoes were laced up tight.

The sitter arrives and I get out the door. I arrive at the site of the event, and I see people playing games and I hear cheering. I look around and see people wearing their event shirt, and then it occurs to me that they are sweaty. I look down the hill as I hear clapping and cheering, and I see someone coming across the finish line. The MWR employee must have seen the question mark on my face, because she said, “Can I help you?”I asked, "What time did the race start?" She told me it started at 7 a.m. I felt completely defeated. It was now 8 a.m. I was pre-registered so I got my shirt, but the interesting thing, or the strange thing, about how my mind works is that I didn't feel that I had earned the shirt. I had not pounded those five miles into the pavement, and at this stage in my training that is what is important to me!

So what's a girl to do? I was in tears. I was embarrassed. I have a sitter. I had planned to do five miles. I stopped at the gym, and I pounded five miles into the treadmill.

After two weeks of vacation as a single parent with three kids, missing the event was the straw on the back of the camel. I had not seen my sweet soldier (via technology) in over a week. I sent him an email regarding the mess and he sent back a sweet reply. After going to the gym, I came home and my FaceTime rang. It was him!

My sweet soldier heard the cry of my heart and made the time to call me. I needed to see his face. I needed to look into his eyes. I needed to see in his countenance that it really was okay that I screwed up my run. Somehow, over thousands of miles, he realized that I was falling apart and he made his best effort to put me back together.

There is a lot of discussion in military wife social circles about the connectivity and technology during deployment. In 2003, I didn't hear from my sweet soldier for three months, but at the beginning of this deployment, I was able to look into his face at the Hobby Lobby via Skype.

But how much is too much? As a general rule, my sweet soldier and I will speak on the phone once every two weeks, and we will email as often as his schedule will permit. So then why do I feel that, this time, it is not enough? Why do I get jealous, this time, of those to talk to their soldiers more often? Well, that is a question for the therapist, but, sweet friends, remember that every relationship is different. Make sure that you discuss your needs, your soldier's needs and the needs of your relationship openly. You can't make it better if no one knows that it is broken. As for me, I will take as much time as he will give me, because "When I see you smile, I can face the world ..."

Strength and Courage ... sby