When teenage Jack reflects on himself at seven years old it is a pure joy. He had a wonderful childhood with two parents that loved each other as well as him very deeply. But his father comes from a long line of people who committed themselves to the military and his father would decide to follow in those footsteps. The night of Jack 7th birthday his father tells him that the next day he is going to be leaving to begin his career in the military. Jack is ecstatic! He understands the legacy and his family, completely supports his father, and cannot wait for his father to return with souvenirs, pictures and stories. What Jack didn't know or have an ability to understand is the amount of time and commitment that his father was going to give to the military. But Jack had a job his father gave him to do, make sure that his mother knew how special she was, how loved she was and to give her hugs every day so that she wouldn't cry. It isn't until Jack becomes a teenager that he is told that his father has been in war.

Eventually he confronts his father about this fact and realizes that sometimes parents lie to keep their children emotionally safe. What Jack nor his mother could have prepared for is his father coming home with PTSD. Like so many other military vets the illness overcame him, and he found himself unable to separate his military experience from his present life. This is a story that has happened, is happening, and will continue to happen to our military vets. The hope is that anyone who loves this country enough to dedicate themselves to it, when they return home that they are able to get any assistance that they believe they need in order to continue being wonderful fathers and mothers and sons and daughters to their families.