A gleam of appreciation

My wife is amazing.

She's carrying a human being, btw. In her belly. This thing is getting so big you can see it using her stomach lining as a punching bag. She's got to deal with all kinds of crap that I don't - limited caffeine (I down gallons of the stuff), no alcohol (not gallons, but...), and she can't lie comfortably, sleep soundly, or walk around without aches and pains. And the tough part is coming. On top of that she's excelling at a job where she's really not getting the appreciation she deserves. She's helping to forge relationships with foreign militaries that should lead to mutual understanding and dialogue rather than belligerence. She's also helping to train our own officers to share in this mutual understanding. She also manages a set of interns that are going to be future leaders in public and private endeavors. But because she's staff and not faculty, her institution can often discount her contribution (thank God her immediate supervisors deeply appreciate her, although their plates are full too, limiting what the attention they can commit to that deserved appreciation). The institutional biases are nothing compared to a Congress full of power-hungry politicos that care more about spewing their ideology to win votes than actually investing in worthwhile public initiatives, even at historic levels (we're not even talking here about adding responsibilities). She can come home from this, bringing home about two thirds of the bacon, and still has the energy and the good humor encourage me in my struggles to tackle my PhD responsibilities. She says its an investment in our future - and that's my intent as well - but my God she's taking the short-term hardships like a champ. I cook and do the dishes and run errands as best I can as if that makes up for the grind she's going through. And she still comes home with a smile (most days... and when there isn't one it's easy for me to restore).