Song in my head: Someone left the cakewalk in the rain..............................Digby


I went to bed last night thinking about the 2 missing soldiers in Iraq. One of the young men was from Oregon and it felt terribly close to home. Earlier in the day I had read The Rude Pundit's disturbing but accurate post and I knew that a horrible death might be a possibility for these two young men.

Chances are, maybe even by the time you read this, the two American soldiers, captured by the Mujahideen Shura Council in Iraq, will be dead, probably in some horrible way, probably with their bodies dumped like all the horribly murdered Iraqis in the blood and gore-strewn landscape that are the markers of Iraqi liberation. The Rude Pundit can't help thinking, though, about the implied "What if" of the capture, on the field of battle, of American soldiers, prisoners of war, if you will.

The what ifs continue into the sickest possibilities of torture that can be inflicted on a human. And as I read the news this morning I realize The Rude Pundit was right. Two young men suffered unbearable anguish and it leaves me shaken and angry with a raw primal scream inside. But instead of alarming my new neighbors, I am writing furiously because I have 2 sons age 24 and 21, similar to the ages of the two missing soldiers. They are two reasons I keep on living and don't succumb to a suicidal depression.

All I need to do is think of their adorable faces as toddlers...running naked around the living room fresh and shiny from a bath with towels used for their superman capes. I see two boys with new haircuts, new backpacks and new sneakers excited for their first day of school. I see 2 boys who I love so much yet see them struggle with their own relationships and pain trying to find a suitable mate. The anguish of losing a child is the most painful and to know your flesh and blood was harmed in such a disgusting way makes me want to wrap my kids in bubble wrap and a protective shield so as they never have to feel a pin prick of pain. Yet as a parent we have to let our children feel the joys and pains of life and somehow cope with their life choices and honor them despite the results. Rest in peace Kristian Menchaca of Houston,Texas and Thomas Tucker of Madras, Oregon.

Which brings me to another earworm....War..huh....What is it good for....Absolutely nothing.

[crossposted and hog-tied at Wagontongues]