Home for Christmas
As kids everywhere hound their parents for additional gift requests and last minute phone calls for party invitations are being made, some kids and mommies elsewhere are sighing: will father make it home for Christmas?
Those who are lucky to have fathers, or parents, working nearby take this privilege for granted. But for those whose fathers have to be away for extended periods of time, be he a truck driver or crab fisherman or scientist on some far-flung place, Christmastime can be a very anxiety-ridden holiday.
There are tear-filled conversations over long distance phone calls. There are appeals made by the kids. There is the matter of exchanging shifts, asking for leaves, and praying for God’s good humor that a squall would pass so one can make it home in time.
Sometimes, a father or parent need not even be away because of distance. Families of doctors and security personnel know too well how it is to celebrate Christmas with a parent away because duty called. And no matter how everyone knows, or is made to understand, that the setup is for the family’s well-being or the greater good, nothing can really beat having your family complete to go to Mass, eat the Christmas ham and open your presents with.
So it is great news that at least one family is having their father for Christmas. Specialist Robert D’Agostino, a soldier from Iraq, will be home with his family in Tampa. Not only will he get to bond with the wife and son he left months before, but also get to meet the second son born to them while he was away.
Can you think of a happier homecoming?
