“Daddy, don’t go!” she cried with cheeks soaked in tears. Rushing forward, she grasped the end of his shirttail and pulled with all her might. “Stay with me, please!”

“Cassandra, I have to go. One day you’ll understand,” he replied while prying her fingers loose.

“I don’t want to understand,” she pouted.

He bent to kiss her brow. “I love you.”

When she didn’t answer, he offered her one last, sad smile then turned to join the other camouflaged men and women boarding the plane. As he disappeared from sight, Cassie finally whispered, “I love you too, Daddy. Be safe…”

~~~~~~~~~~

Photo credit:

"I'll Miss You Dad by Cecilio M. Ricardo Jr" by Technical Sergeant Cecilio M. Ricardo Jr., USAF - Image and caption can be found here. High resolution of image here. Licensed under Public domain via Wikimedia Commons -

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:I%27ll_Miss_You_Dad_by_Cecilio_M._Ricardo_Jr.jpg#mediaviewer/File:I%27ll_Miss_You_Dad_by_Cecilio_M._Ricardo_Jr.jpg