Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt, USMC

Another trip home

February 9th, 2007 by Jaclyn Sharratt

This past weekend, February 2nd, Justin, my boyfriend Matt, and myself traveled home to Pennsylvania. Justin is meeting with our attorneys out East, and made a weekend stop to visit. It is amazing how much easier it is for our family to handle this whole ordeal when we are together, supporting each other. It is as though we create a shield that allows us to push all of the worry and pain aside and enjoy each other’s company, laugh at jokes, and feel, well, normal again. The pain subsides, and even though it is only for a brief period of time, it feels like we all are able to take a deep breath of fresh air.  

Our flights got into Pittsburgh around 8pm. An old friend from Indiana, Kelly, came with my family to greet us at the airport. She is basically an extension of our family, and it is always wonderful to have her with us. Hugs were exchanged, but I have noticed they linger longer, and we all squeeze a bit tighter. After a brief car ride home, with many stories shared since we last saw each other a few weeks ago, we got to the house and raided the kitchen. One thing our family never lacks is good, home-cooked food! We ate for hours and laughed nonstop. It is hard, in moments such as this, to imagine why something like this is happening to our family. I can see how much we have all changed. My Dad now has gray hair, my Moms eyes look sad all the time, Justin has lost weight, and I sometimes don’t even recognize myself in the mirror. But even in the sad times, we all still have each other.  

The next day I made Justin and Matt go shopping. My brother needed some dress shoes, and we had to find Moms her Valentine’s Day gift. Since she is studying to be a medical transcriptionist, she lives at her desk. So far we have upgraded her monitor, mouse, and keyboard. She does not buy anything for herself, so we opted to get her a new computer chair. The three of us literally spent an hour trying out the variety of chairs Office Max has to offer. One thing about my brother is he is always willing to do anything to make someone else happy. I give our Moms credit for that; she has the best heart, and always puts others before herself. Later that evening we went bowling with two of our childhood friends. We had such a good time catching up, reliving stories from the past, and telling new ones. I am sure Matt enjoyed hearing about Justin and I being mischievous little kids!  

After bowling we went home and spent a few more hours together, knowing this could, once again, be the last time we get to be with my brother before this incident hits us in the face. The next morning we ate breakfast, but you could tell our smiles weren’t as big, or our laughs as genuine. Goodbyes were exchanged, and once again my brother and I were at the airport, going our separate ways. He was heading to spend a week with our lawyers, and I was heading to Chicago. Who knows, maybe we will get to have another weekend like this past one…