The Escapees

Greetings everyone,

I've talked with Harry several time via email and he sends his hello's. He's having an amazing time aboard the USS Mount Whitney. He says the ministry opportunities are endless and the experience has been both rewarding and fulfilling.

We here left on the home front have had a little different experience. I would not quite call it rewarding....rather exhausting. A few difficulties in adjusting to life without Harry. For starters I did not realize how Harry takes care of the animals.

Recently we received an email from a friend of ours. Becky is also a Navy Chaplain's spouse. Several months ago she said Bon Voyage to her husband as he set sail with the U.S Navy. In her email she talked about the struggles of being a "single" mother. It never dawned on me.... when husbands or wives are out to sea or deployed, the spouses left at home become "single parents" for the time being.

I had a small and I mean small taste of that this week. Harry and I have no children. Kids just have not fit into our equation just yet. However, we do have Oliver, the cat, and Miss Peabody, our newly acquired Greek dog.

Oliver, the orange tabby domestic short haired cat. Adopted from the shelter in Atlanta the day after we returned from the honeymoon, Oliver has been with us from the beginning and through it all. Even the 27 hour flight from Atlanta to Souda. I did not know they made kitty Valium, but they do.

Then of course we have Miss Peabody, the newest edition to the Hansen household. February of this past year, during a snow storm, someone tossed out several puppies. Abandoned, starved, freezing, and scared, Harry was able to catch onlyone. We brought her inside, fed her, quickly bathed her, which she hated and still hates to this day. Barely moving, she ate and slept in front of the fireplace for 3 straight days.

At that time we had Sunday night fellowship at our house, so she quickly became the Chapel mascot. She was instantly Harry's baby. He could not find anyone else to lick his toes when he stepped through the door.

I, being sceptically and dubious about the new addition, was not sure we were going to keep her, did not allow anyone to name her. We also had landlord issues. He has his vineyard on our front and surrounding lawn and did not want a dog to contaminate his grapes. He said we could not keep her and Harry said yes we are. We almost had to move out and into another house.

After 3 weeks of everyone trying to name her, me watching her personality develop, and Harry fighting for her residency..... we finally decided to name her Miss Peabody.

Her name came from a mixture of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple and Clue's Miss Peacock. Inquistitve and instrusive yet friendly. Our Miss Peabody is so nosey. Into things all the time and when caught... has this look of innocence ... and "what did I do" expression. And of course the other obvious reason.... she was not house trained just yet.

Since last February our cinder block has contained Harry, me, Kayne, Oliver, and Miss Peabody. Oliver and Miss Peabody's typical day includes eating, sleeping, playing, and hissing, spitting, stealing each others food, drinking out of each others dish while the other is not looking, and sometimes all out war. Typical Hansen household day.

And like I said earlier, I did not realize the extent of Harry's involvement with the animals. Primarily in the wee hours of the morning. That's where the problems started! The wee hours of the morning.

The very next day after Harry's departure was the first attempt to escape. Both are inside pets, but Oliver has never been allowed outside, he was no claws. Miss Peabody goes outside, but somewhat monitored... we still have landlord issues... we must keep her out of his vineyard.

Problem #1: Miss Peabody's bladder is on Harry's scheduled work day. Around 4:30 -5:00 a.m. Miss Peabody is up and doing the pee dance. Pacing back and forth needing to go outside.

Problem #2: I do not function before 9 a.m.. However, I do like the rugs in my house and I do not want them "marked" with Peabody's territory.

So early in the morning, I crawl sleepily out of bed, barely turning on lights...I do not want the light to fully wake me, stagger down the steps... keeping my balance by hugging the wall, shuffle to the door, and let the lightening bolt dog bolt outside to do her business. I then turn and drag myself back up the stairs and fall back into bed. No problem.... right? I was knocked out within seconds.

Around 10:30 a.m. my usual come to life time of day, 5 1/2 hours after the lightening bolt dog, I hear this screeching sound. I recognize the sound as Oliver's cry. I jump up, yell for Kayne to check the upstairs balconies (Oliver sometimes gets locked out on the balcony ledge and cries for help). I begin searching our floor. Kayne still searching the upstairs. Then the crying gets louder and louder in quickening rasps. Now I am flipping out. Where's the cat? Make sure he does not fall off a ledge. Then Kayne sees him.... Oliver is outside the front door crying to come back in.

What? How did he get outside? He must have escaped when I was letting Peabody out earlier. He does that often, Harry now tells me.

"Kristie, you have to watch him, he tries to run between your legs when you are not looking, Harry says. Thanks Harry!

We scoop up Oliver and bring him inside. He runs straight for the litter box then the food bowl. I guess he had no idea the entire outside could have been his litter box. And I suspect his hunter skills must be a little weak or either he just loves Hill's Science Diet. Even though I find half eaten lizards and scorpions all over the house. Oliver is definitely an inside house cat.

Miss Peabody then comes bounding out of the vineyard.... yes that would be a problem with the landlord. The vineyard! Bad dog!She leaps the wall like a super dog. Running full force to skid up to the door. That's when I fully see her. She had been a blur until coming to a full stop.

She is covered in red clay. Head to toe, crusted caked on red clay. "Oh Miss Peabody, what have you done?" I ask her. She just wags her tail ready to come inside for a snack. "Straight upstairs to the bath" I tell her. She still hates baths so this is a just punishment. Bad dog! I bend down to pat her head so she thinks she isn't in too much trouble. That's when I fully smell her....

She smells like a dead animal. Very bad dog! Not sure what kind? She brings us mice, birds, lizards, scorpions, and things we have no idea what they used to be. I make sure whatever it was is still not in her mouth! Nope. Thank God! I think... Where is Harry?... this is his job. My first day on the job and I lose Oliver and did not even know it, allow Peabody to run amok with dead carcase and in the vineyard. In the vineyard. Okay, now I am thinking bad mother!

She knows she is in so much trouble!

So up to the bath for Peabody. Oliver now needs a nap, too much play time for him outside. Within the hour Peabody is clean and smells somewhat normal and settling down for a nap, Oliver is conked out on the bed. I take a deep breath and try to normalize my heart rate. Am I a bad mother? Or just need my sleep?

That's when Becky's email hits me.... this is what it's like to be a single parent on a fraction of the scale. I could not imagine this with actual kids. Kids that have the ability to communicate back and require more than a food dish and clean litter box. I would surely be a bad mother to "real" kids.

So my hats off to all those "single" parents during their spouses deployments. It's tough to adjust life from a normal functioning family to a single parent household. Then when life seems to normalize in the absence.. it's time for the other spouse to return and completely shift the dynamics once again.

Another friend of ours was telling us the story of how her husband was out to sea. Her and their teenage son managed life several months together. She became the mother / father figure, the provider, the protector, the disciplinary... the single parent. When the husband came home he was so excited to see everyone. Families go through this honeymoon phase where everything is wonderful. Then reality hits. A few days later when he tried to discipline their son....the son stomps upstairs yelling back down, "Why don't you just go back to sea, me and mom managed just fine without you." Needless to say this hurt the father more than words can say. But of course being a Chaplain he realized it's just part of the transition for reuniting families. Bt it still hurt none the less.

So today, my thoughts and prayers are for all those military families that have struggled, are in the struggle, and will struggle with the return reunions of deployed spouses. We in the civilian world do not know the difficulties involved with serving in the United States Armed Forces.

So keep separated families in your prayers this week. Keep in mind how both sides struggle with the separation.

We here left on the island are coping with Harry's absence better each day. We miss him and are so proud of what he is doing. If we could only train Miss Peabody's bladder to my time table, life would be a lot easier.

Blessings until next time,

Kristie