March 17th, 2009

To whom it may concern,

Alexandra is young, sweet, and intelligent. She comes from a good home. Her father is doting, and her mother serves her country. She looks like your daughter. Alex is wearing a butterfly shirt and your favorite hoodie. Yep, that one— much too big, but it’s her favorite too. And she’s wearing the new shoes she saved her own money to buy. Close your eyes for a moment and you can see her. Listen, and you can hear her laugh— she still laughs at your silly jokes. She’s eating toast for breakfast while you write her an absence letter for school.

She’s smiling, and yet, as so many young children do, Alex struggles to cope with the weight of the world invisible to those who are carrying a measure of their own. She is exactly as you imagine.

What would someone learn about a young girl, struggling to carry this load, if they only had letters as portholes to look into her world?

I learned a lot…

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To whom it may concern,

First, please let me thank the faculty and staff involved in planning the surprise for Alex. Though we were all disappointed the flights for my wife’s unit were delayed, it really was the thought that counts counted.

To that end, the support and genuine care afforded my daughter has been wonderful. It has been essential. Her mother’s deployment was especially tough for Alex to cope with, but your team really stepped up, and that has made a world of difference in Alex’ year. So, again, thank you.

As it were, my wife’s flight landed around 2:15 Sunday morning, and we got home about 4:30, maybe 5 am. The reunion wasn’t as expected, and the kids were so tired.

With that in mind, I decided to keep our children home from School yesterday for some much needed Mom-time. Please excuse Alexandra’s absence yesterday, Monday the 16th, for family reasons. Turns out, lessons were still learned:

(3 of us + 1 of mom = Whole Family)

Respectfully,

John Cameron

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Editorial note:

This is a monthly serialized epistolary fiction and subsequent entries will be published mid-month until Alex’ story is complete.

This is a work of fiction and of my imagination alone. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is mere coincidence.

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