Mamamontezz's Mental Rumpus Room

Farewell is not Good-bye

Very soon, too soon, my blogson Slaglerock will be
stepping onto a plane, packed and alone, to fly the thousands of miles which stretch between home and his new duty assignment. Although he will not be there for long, it will seem like forever for his young family, his "old" family, and for his friends and supporters both online and off. I will certainly be one of them.

While Slaglerock was assigned to Prince Sultan AFB prior to and during the Iraq buildup, I asked his dad, PapaSlagle, for his email address so that I could correspond. I had never been much of one for traditional penpals, but I decided that this was something I could do. It was a duty thing for me at first, one made easier by the email buddy being my "sorta" nephew. So after a few days of wondering what to say, I sent that first email, and he responded right back. And with that, the seeds of a wonderful online friendship were planted.

Some days our emails flew through the ether so fast and thick it was almost as though we were in Instant Messenger. We shared jokes, stories about our families, bits and pieces of each others' lives, even shared quiet, private mails when one of us just needed sympathy or understanding.

On those days when his duties took him out and away from his desk, I would miss him and worry like some old mother hen. And when I was away for a day or a vacation, I would come back to find jokes and stories and a "How you doing?" waiting for me.

I introduced him to blogging, built him his very first site, and still help him when he needs help with his site or with a post. He took to blogging famously, with a readership that grows daily and blogroll linkage that shames my sorry little blog. One thing about his posts: When Slaglerock posts on something there is absolutely no question whatsoever where he stands.

While my family was going through hard times, he was always there and continues to be there for both me and for his uncle Delftsman. He found an excellent way to pull Delfts out of his darkness by sending him links to the posts at the Slaughterhouse where trolls had left their spoor, turning him lose on them and giving him some of his fight back.

Slaglerock, you have been the son I'll never have and the friend I'll always cherish, and I hope you know I will always be there for you. I wish you Godspeed and safety all the days you are gone. You are in my heart and in my prayers.

MamaRock Out!

Posted by Delftsman3 at February 23, 2005 04:47 PM