Derek Bradford

Last week my ex-husbands daughter Renae was my house guest for 8 days. We had a great time, although it was difficult for me to not be a 'mom' and just be a friend. She's all grown up now, married, and I am so proud of the life she has made for herself. Renae has had every obstacle placed in her way to use as an excuse to do nothing. But her drive and determination to overcome and do something with her life has been inspiring. I can't take credit for it, but I do hope that at least a tiny bit of that drive an determination and belief in herself came from me. I'd like to think my impact on her young life was positive in some way.

Her visit was perfect timing for me too, helping me to adjust to my new life of being 'alone'. I really enjoyed our time together. Saturday was her last day, and we made the most of it spending most of the day on the beach. (sorry about the sunburn Renae!)

That evening, we decided to make a quick trip to town so she could get some souvenirs to take back with her to KY. And to make a long story short, random occurrences put us in the path of a young man who needed our help. It seems this young Army Private, Derek Bradford, had been stranded at the gas station by my house and needed a ride. We piled his possessions, including his army fatigues, boots and helmet into the trunk of my car and headed down the road. I told him I couldn't take him all the way home to Marianna, but I would take him as far as I could.

It was an interesting drive. I found out that Derek had joined the army because he had a desire to serve his country. No one in his family supported him, or was proud of him. That made me very sad. He had just returned from serving his first tour in Iraq. I could tell that this 21 year old kid had experienced things I could not even imagine and that it had really affected him. But he was very excited and anxious to go back and do it again.

If you know me very well, you know that I am very patriotic . It's always an honor for me to meet and be able to thank a soldier. You can be sure that I expressed my thanks to Derek sincerely, and the boy made a real impression on me. He was extremely polite and courteous, but I wouldn't have minded if he hadn't called me "ma'am" so many times.

I suppose my point of this is just to say thanks again to you, Derek Bradford, for being there that evening. It was such a blessing to me to be able to do something for you. After all, you have put your life on the line for me and you had never even met me.

Sometimes God knows just what to send you to help you realize how blessed you are and to stop you from feeling sorry for yourself. It had been a particularly difficult day because I knew I was taking Renae to the airport early Sunday and then hitting the road myself to head back to Atlanta for the week for a seminar. I love Atlanta, but I just was NOT ready to travel again so soon. But here I am in the Big City. I've got a lot of learning to do this week, and thanks to young people like Derek Bradford, I have the freedom and opportunity to do it. 

God Bless You Derek Bradford. I will be praying for your safe return to your family. And God Bless Our Troops!