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Punched In the Gut

It was about five years ago that a little movie called Valentine’s Day came out.
Cheesy-ish rom-com about what happens on Valentine’s Day for a more than a few people whose lives are somehow vaguely connected, with an all-star cast that kind of made it better than the storyline would have suggested.

I saw it somewhere near the end of my time in Australia – month two of my journey on The World Race – with the guys on my team.
It was a spur of the moment decision, because we were at a mall, somehow found our way through the maze to the movie theater, and thought a movie would be a good idea.
Because I’d been sick on Valentine’s Day (the day, not the movie), which was when the rest of the team had gone out for dinner to mark the day, seeing that movie kind of turned into making up for not getting to join my teammates.

I kind of wish I could say I remember what goes on over the course of the movie, but I don’t remember.
One of the many plotlines running through the movie (and the only one I really remember) is a military mom who is coming home for a few days in the middle of her deployment to the Middle East to see her son.

I remember it because I remember the beautiful punch in the gut moment it was for me to watch this mom’s arrival home and her son’s reaction to it.
If you’ve ever had family (or friends that feel like it) in the military that has been deployed in a war zone, you know what that moment feels like when you see them again for the first time in months.
For me, it was a brother and sister both, and for a few seconds I was reliving those moments.

So, yes, I choked back a little bit of a sob when that mother and son were reunited on-screen.

But until last night, I haven’t thought much about that moment since it happened.
A video popped up in my Facebook feed of Poppy Girls performing Regina Spektor’s song “The Call” (my favorite Regina Spektor song, by the way).

Do yourself a favor and watch it. Like, right now.
I'm even inserting the blog so you don't have an excuse to not watch it.



The end of the Poppy Girls video was one of the best parts for me because one of the girls in the group had a father who was deployed and wouldn’t make it to see the performance live.
Of course, in our social media-driven world, that means the father is going to show up at the end to surprise his daughter.
Once again, I was crying the moment this girl saw her father and started running towards him.
I know that feeling, and it’s why you’ll find me crying and possibly grinning almost every single time I see such a moment.

It’s also why you’ll be shaking your head at me when I tell you I actually liked that movie I can’t remember very much of called Valentine’s Day.
Sometimes one moment all it takes, folks.

Until next time.

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