I received a Kosmail from postmodernista that I thought worthy of sharing with Kibitzers. She says her daughter, KitKat, has a request for Kossacks and she asked me to help her get the word out. I love the idea that Kitchen Table Kibitzing can be used for this purpose, so first I'll share some background and history and then her request:
postmodernista's daughter, KitKat, has loved the water since she was a baby.
This is my water baby, my bright and sunshiny Kate. They stopped the baby swim classes when she was not even one year old, so that everybody could watch her do her dolphin thing.
So after graduating from High School, she joined the Coast Guard.
The U.S. Coast Guard is one of the five armed forces of the United States and the only military organization within the Department of Homeland Security. Since 1790 the Coast Guard has safeguarded our Nation's maritime interests and environment around the world. The Coast Guard is an adaptable, responsive military force of maritime professionals whose broad legal authorities, capable assets, geographic diversity and expansive partnerships provide a persistent presence along our rivers, in the ports, littoral regions and on the high seas. Coast Guard presence and impact is local, regional, national and international. These attributes make the Coast Guard a unique instrument of maritime safety, security and environmental stewardship.
On October 31, KitKat
departed for Cape May for basic training. With encouragement from Coast Guard personnel, mom and KitKat said goodbye.
"love you, Mama- don't worry,"
(And every time I read this I get teary so here you go)
"Go fly, Birdie, with your grownup wings', to which she replied ' All grown up and saving China!' (Mulan movie reference)
I cannot find it in my heart to be sad, to worry, to second guess my girl's decisions. Little as I know, she made this choice and the glow and excitement on her face is absolutely unmistakeable. This is so perfect for her, and I must thank y'all who provided support and good advice to here. Even my worrywart self cannot find any problem with her decision, and damn, to see her glow like that- priceless.
But at Cape May, KitKat
didn't pass the first basic training test, but she wasn't sent home either. So more physical training was required...
And after a couple more weeks of endurance and physical training postmodernista just received word that Kitkat has passed the physical training requirements and is now assigned to the Echo Company. She says KitKat had to be able to run a certain length in a particular time frame, and do sits ups and push ups to meet graduation standards. However some of her peers remain in limbo if they are injured or cannot meet the physical training requirements. In this case they remain in a holding pattern until they are healed or can meet the requirements to be assigned to a company.
Kitkat wrote her mom requesting her to ask Kossacks to write to her and her peers so they could feel they are more connected and in touch with the world outside of training and the Coast Guard.
Here is the diary postmodernista posted yesterday with some excerpts.
"Hey, could you ask some of the DKos people to write me? That would be so cool....Could you ask them to write to the other recruits in PFH/RHE too? Or all of them? Just to all the recruits in J__ Hall, H__ Hall, and S____Hall? They don't need to mention me at all, just write motivational letters, please? Being in RHE and PFH kinda drives recruits nuts because we have so much time to think about how much it sucks, and not everyone gets a letter every day, or has someone to write to. I think having someone write to them would be nice."
postmodernista says that PFH stands for physical fitness hold but she is unsure what RHE stands for.
It is hardest for those who haven't passed their physical training tests or are in limbo as their injuries heal.
Excerpt from postmodernista's diary:
She also asked me if I could make my letters smell like home- so the next one that goes will have a couple of rosemary leaves, the one after that will be rubbed with cinnamon, and so forth.
That's my soft-hearted child. And when I read that, I could see so many issues with making it happen, but I can't not try, because there are a bunch of kids there, every bit as lonely as mine, but with nobody to anticipate a letter from, or tell how the day or the week is going.
Seeing as how I don't know much about how such things might work, I'll listen to any advice y'all might have. If it is feasible, send me a pm and I'll send you the address. If it isn't, or needs to be handled differently, please let me know.
I know y'all are busy with your jobs, families, causes, volunteering etc... but would you please take a few minutes and write a letter to KitKat or one of her peers? As it is, they can only receive letters as there is no computer access for emails, Daily Kos, Facebook, twitter etc...
Kossack BlackSheep1 posted this link: Any Soldier if you wish to send your support to a Soldier, Marine, Sailor, Airman or Coastguardsman but need information on what to send and where to send, this website is helpful.
Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of the evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, and interesting videos, as well as links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate.
Readers may notice that most who post diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but newcomers should not feel excluded. We welcome guests at our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well.