As most of you know, Josh served in the Iraq War in 2003-2004. Josh and I knew each other before he was deployed, before he ever enlisted. In fact I think it was back in 1999 that we met. From the first time I saw him, I think my heart was in love. I wish I could say that it was love at first sight and we lived happily ever after, but I can't. My head fought it because I had so much else going on. I met him right after an emotional break up and I just wasn't ready to think about moving on. Unfortunately for me, I missed out on a lot of time with him. We saw each other when our friends got together and every time I did, my heart ached. I knew there was something about him and I knew I had strong feelings for him.
Eventually I moved to Arizona in 2001 and we lost touch. I heard that he enlisted that Summer. I moved back to Oregon in March 2002 and we still did not have any contact besides being in the same place at the same time with mutual friends. I always tried to talk to him but he's really good at giving the cold shoulder! Anyway, towards the end of 2002 Josh got word that he was going to deploy in the beginning of 2003. In January we all got together to say goodbye to him. He didn't actually deploy for a couple of more weeks but I didn't hear from him again until probably that Spring.
I kept wondering and waiting to see if I would hear from him. Finally, one day at work an email popped up from him. It was an email letting everyone know that he was okay. I was so excited to hear from him. I wrote him back and he actually wrote me back again. At first, I still didn't think that I had a chance with him so I was just trying to be a friend and chat. Of course that eventually changed and I knew that I was falling for him "all over again" as if I'd ever stopped. Over the next few months we talked over email. It was devastating not to hear from him at least once a day. And then if I didn't hear from him for days I got really worried and longed for an email with his name to pop up in my inbox. He always did get back to me though. I started sending him cards in the mail as well. I thought, who doesn't like getting real mail? Josh's favorite color is yellow and so I went to the store and bought yellow stationery. All of the letters I wrote to him came on yellow paper and in a yellow envelope. It was my way of saying, "You've got mail from Kristie," without him having to get close enough to read it. Later on, he told me it was always nice to see letters waiting on his bunk for him. I tried to write him as much as I could, even if I had nothing to say. I knew anything from home would be a welcome change.
Over the months, our friendship grew and we were talking more and more. Then November came and I knew so did his birthday. I think that was the first package I sent to him. Then Christmas came along after that and I sent another package, enough for him and his friends with all sorts of cookies and treats. I had a couple of my friends help donate treats and one even helped with the postage. It ended up being a pretty big box! One of my coworkers even brought in her FoodSaver because we thought it would stay fresh longer. I thought it would take weeks to get there but I think it made it there in only a week or so. An early Christmas treat.
In January of 2004 I was laid off from my job. With that went my internet access. My stomach actually ached realizing that I would not be able to check my email every 3 minutes. I didn't have internet at my apartment at the time so every day I would go to the library to check my email. One day, I saw him in my inbox and was shocked to find out that he was home on leave! It said that he had been home for a week and had been resting at home before letting anyone know he was back. I was so excited! And then it hit me that just because he was home, didn’t mean that he would have time for me. I think by that night I gathered enough courage to call him and see if he wanted to do something. I can’t remember if I called him and he said, “I was just about to call you,” or if it was the other way around. Nevertheless, I was even more excited to find out he was thinking about me too. We decided that he would pick me up at my apartment and we would go to a movie in Sherwood. We saw 50 First Dates and then went back to my house. We talked forever. I definitely didn’t want him to leave and I don’t think he wanted to either. Eventually he did though. But at the door he kissed me goodbye. And then we kissed again for about 5 minutes. :)
I saw him one more time before he left. I knew that I was in love with him and there was no denying it. Fortunately his deployment was ending in May and so I didn’t have to wait too much longer for him to come home permanently but it was the longest 8 weeks or so ever in my life!
Once he was home, I still had some work to do in convincing him that I had to be his girlfriend. But since then it HAS been happily ever after. I can honestly say that he became my best friend through our long distance email and we got to know each other again over that time.
4 years later, we own a wonderful home and have a beautiful little girl. He has made me the happiest woman alive. I have never known a man with such honor and integrity. He loves his family and he does everything to take care of not only his wife and daughter, but his parents and anyone else that needs him. He works very hard and sometimes spreads himself really thin but he wouldn’t have it any other way. His first priority is to take care of the people that he loves.
As a medic, he’s known as Doc. A lot of who he is came from the Army but I also know that a lot of what the Army teaches, he already knew and practiced. They didn’t have a lot of work to do with him. He was already a Great Man. His soldiers love and respect him and they know that he cares about them and their well-being. He also knows how to say, “Suck it up.” He probably wishes he could say that to me more often.
As a son, he’s known as Raph. He does everything he can to make sure that his parents are taken care of, even if it means time away from us or time he doesn’t get for himself. He cuts wood, does repairs and helps his dad with projects around their house.
As a brother, he is known as Uncle Josh. He loves his sisters and their families. He even travels with a toddler to Nome to build a deck for one of their friends! She was generous enough to pay for our trip of course. He builds planes, “lifts” you by your head, tickles, wrestles and takes being jumped on.
At home, he’s known as Dada. It’s as much a term of endearment coming from me as it is from Megan. He does so much for us that I wouldn’t even know where to start without him. He does things that I don’t even know he does. He helps me with the laundry and changing diapers. He even dusts! And then he does just about everything outside!
As a veteran, he is known as Sgt. VanValkenburg. He is so humble, he doesn’t like to be seen out in his uniform. The reason for that is because people aren’t shy anymore about thanking him for his service, which is wonderful. Then I have to pretend I have something in my eye because it makes me so proud of him. He is so humble that he has been awarded medals that he doesn’t even tell me about. As a veteran, he has earned and deserves military benefits but won’t accept them because he knows there are others that need it a lot more than he does.
Eventually I moved to Arizona in 2001 and we lost touch. I heard that he enlisted that Summer. I moved back to Oregon in March 2002 and we still did not have any contact besides being in the same place at the same time with mutual friends. I always tried to talk to him but he's really good at giving the cold shoulder! Anyway, towards the end of 2002 Josh got word that he was going to deploy in the beginning of 2003. In January we all got together to say goodbye to him. He didn't actually deploy for a couple of more weeks but I didn't hear from him again until probably that Spring.
I kept wondering and waiting to see if I would hear from him. Finally, one day at work an email popped up from him. It was an email letting everyone know that he was okay. I was so excited to hear from him. I wrote him back and he actually wrote me back again. At first, I still didn't think that I had a chance with him so I was just trying to be a friend and chat. Of course that eventually changed and I knew that I was falling for him "all over again" as if I'd ever stopped. Over the next few months we talked over email. It was devastating not to hear from him at least once a day. And then if I didn't hear from him for days I got really worried and longed for an email with his name to pop up in my inbox. He always did get back to me though. I started sending him cards in the mail as well. I thought, who doesn't like getting real mail? Josh's favorite color is yellow and so I went to the store and bought yellow stationery. All of the letters I wrote to him came on yellow paper and in a yellow envelope. It was my way of saying, "You've got mail from Kristie," without him having to get close enough to read it. Later on, he told me it was always nice to see letters waiting on his bunk for him. I tried to write him as much as I could, even if I had nothing to say. I knew anything from home would be a welcome change.
Over the months, our friendship grew and we were talking more and more. Then November came and I knew so did his birthday. I think that was the first package I sent to him. Then Christmas came along after that and I sent another package, enough for him and his friends with all sorts of cookies and treats. I had a couple of my friends help donate treats and one even helped with the postage. It ended up being a pretty big box! One of my coworkers even brought in her FoodSaver because we thought it would stay fresh longer. I thought it would take weeks to get there but I think it made it there in only a week or so. An early Christmas treat.
In January of 2004 I was laid off from my job. With that went my internet access. My stomach actually ached realizing that I would not be able to check my email every 3 minutes. I didn't have internet at my apartment at the time so every day I would go to the library to check my email. One day, I saw him in my inbox and was shocked to find out that he was home on leave! It said that he had been home for a week and had been resting at home before letting anyone know he was back. I was so excited! And then it hit me that just because he was home, didn’t mean that he would have time for me. I think by that night I gathered enough courage to call him and see if he wanted to do something. I can’t remember if I called him and he said, “I was just about to call you,” or if it was the other way around. Nevertheless, I was even more excited to find out he was thinking about me too. We decided that he would pick me up at my apartment and we would go to a movie in Sherwood. We saw 50 First Dates and then went back to my house. We talked forever. I definitely didn’t want him to leave and I don’t think he wanted to either. Eventually he did though. But at the door he kissed me goodbye. And then we kissed again for about 5 minutes. :)
I saw him one more time before he left. I knew that I was in love with him and there was no denying it. Fortunately his deployment was ending in May and so I didn’t have to wait too much longer for him to come home permanently but it was the longest 8 weeks or so ever in my life!
Once he was home, I still had some work to do in convincing him that I had to be his girlfriend. But since then it HAS been happily ever after. I can honestly say that he became my best friend through our long distance email and we got to know each other again over that time.
4 years later, we own a wonderful home and have a beautiful little girl. He has made me the happiest woman alive. I have never known a man with such honor and integrity. He loves his family and he does everything to take care of not only his wife and daughter, but his parents and anyone else that needs him. He works very hard and sometimes spreads himself really thin but he wouldn’t have it any other way. His first priority is to take care of the people that he loves.
As a medic, he’s known as Doc. A lot of who he is came from the Army but I also know that a lot of what the Army teaches, he already knew and practiced. They didn’t have a lot of work to do with him. He was already a Great Man. His soldiers love and respect him and they know that he cares about them and their well-being. He also knows how to say, “Suck it up.” He probably wishes he could say that to me more often.
As a son, he’s known as Raph. He does everything he can to make sure that his parents are taken care of, even if it means time away from us or time he doesn’t get for himself. He cuts wood, does repairs and helps his dad with projects around their house.
As a brother, he is known as Uncle Josh. He loves his sisters and their families. He even travels with a toddler to Nome to build a deck for one of their friends! She was generous enough to pay for our trip of course. He builds planes, “lifts” you by your head, tickles, wrestles and takes being jumped on.
At home, he’s known as Dada. It’s as much a term of endearment coming from me as it is from Megan. He does so much for us that I wouldn’t even know where to start without him. He does things that I don’t even know he does. He helps me with the laundry and changing diapers. He even dusts! And then he does just about everything outside!
As a veteran, he is known as Sgt. VanValkenburg. He is so humble, he doesn’t like to be seen out in his uniform. The reason for that is because people aren’t shy anymore about thanking him for his service, which is wonderful. Then I have to pretend I have something in my eye because it makes me so proud of him. He is so humble that he has been awarded medals that he doesn’t even tell me about. As a veteran, he has earned and deserves military benefits but won’t accept them because he knows there are others that need it a lot more than he does.
As my husband, he is known as the love of my life, the wonderful father of my children and My Hero.
3 comments:
Thank you for your service to our country, Josh. And thanks for being such a great man to my friend!
I'm totally crying. That is the sweetest thing I've ever read. He's a pretty awesome brother-in-law too!!
Yes thank you Josh! I loved hearing your story step by step of how you met and fell in love Kristie. Your both very blessed and the best part is that I know YOU KNOW THAT and are thankful for it everyday!
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