• Newsletters
  • Subscribe
/
1x
Living

Can I be excited now?

Crisis averted and Ben is coming home as planned. But it still feels impossible to relax and get excited for him to return because somehow, it doesn't quite feel real.
By Kelly Thompson
Add Chatelaine(opens in a new tab)
Can I be excited now?

So the decision has been made and Ben is coming home on 17 December as planned. And I’ve been accused of faking his potential extension in Afghanistan in order to gain blog ratings!!! REALLY? So no, it was not faked. In fact, it felt so real that I was already planning on him staying there for another 4 months. I began putting his Christmas gifts in a box to mail off to him. I was about to cancel my Christmas/Welcome home party I had planned. It felt as though it had happened before I even got the official word back from him.

The thing is, being in the military too, I had already accepted that the right thing was for Ben to stay, even though I wanted him home so badly because the mission is too important to leave manning gaps over there. So I sort of resigned to the idea and accepted it as reality. So now I can calm down. The thing is, I can't.

Advertisement

Things should finally be settling down in my life. I'll have someone to help me clean. Someone to sleep next to every night. Someone to finally check those creepy noises in the basement. I’ve passed my university courses with straight A’s. Hell, maybe Ben and I will go on a vacation. Maybe we'll finally live a life resembling that of a couple.

Related Stories

Everything We Know (So Far!) About Taylor Swift And Travis Kelce’s Wedding
Culture

Everything We Know (So Far!) About Taylor Swift And Travis Kelce’s Wedding

It’s a love story… and baby, where will they say yes?

But I can't help but feel like things might come crashing down around me. Will he show up on the date planned? Will he be safe? And most of all, will we mesh again?

Advertisement

Yes, I'm scared and stressed. But he's finally coming home. That much should be for certain now. But until he's home, in our house, in my arms, it's impossible to remain at all calm. Because I know all too well how it can change in an instant, changing everything I thought I knew.

Kelly

Advertisement

The very best of Chatelaine straight to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Copy link

More Like This

Chatelaine Summer 2026 cover, featuring a woman biting into a burger.

Subscribe to Chatelaine!

Sandwiches! Sundaes! Jello shots! Plus the lowdown on the female desire pill, women who hit major life milestones at 50 and guest editor Meredith Shaw's all-Canadian summer lookbook.