Feeling Stressed? Remember Freedom

Commentary by Maj. Jeffrey Ferrer 386th Expeditionary Communications Squadron Det. 1 commander 4/11/2008 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- It's been more than 80 days since I arrived at a Southwest Asian air base, and as I reflect upon my time here it feels as if we just arrived only a few days ago. While some Airmen deploy for as few as 60 days, others deploy for up to 12 to 15 months. We military folks should be accustomed to being apart from our loved ones during deployments; however, there are a multitude of stresses on the military member, as well as on the families left behind. We sometimes are not there in person to take care of family issues or being at special events. We sometimes miss birthdays, wedding anniversaries, a sibling's wedding, or holidays. The stresses are often hard to bear. You can see them in the faces of our fellow Airmen. You may have experienced someone letting off some steam by chewing out someone in the office for infractions, yelling at roommates, throwing a tantrum (yes, some adults still do it), being unreasonable, or experiencing someone who is normally polite turn into an angry irrational person. We all need to keep these types of behaviors in check. The stresses will build up throughout the deployment, so we need to know when to take a step back and cool off for a bit. Do you miss your family? I know I do. I miss my 2-year-old son and I am missing the moments when he learns a new word or experiences something for the first time. I miss my wife, as she always finds ways to make me laugh and smile each day. I miss their hugs and kisses and the simple things in daily life, but despite being apart from them, I realize that as an Airman we have a responsibility to uphold for the Air Force, our sister services and our nation. If we do not support our mission, meet career field standards, fulfill job requirements or take care of ourselves then a part of the overall mission will fail. Basically, the big picture is we will hurt the mission, career field, job and ourselves if we cannot live up to our responsibilities during our deployment. Just the other day, I was saddened and reminded of why we are here in theater. Several military members from the Marines, Army, Air Force and contract civilians witnessed the arrival of a C-130 Hercules carrying our fallen comrades who were killed by a suicide attack recently in Iraq. We held a procession and rendered them the proper salutes during an offload honor ceremony. The stresses we face back home or during our deployments do not come close to what our fallen comrades in arms had to face. This brings home a true reminder of our involvement in support of operation Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Rather than worrying about stress or feeling the stress, we need to remember what we are fighting for. That is why I'd like to impress upon all of us, whether you are military or civilian, that we are here for freedom.