It’s hard to believe that it’s already the middle of September. It’s back to the hectic days of balancing school work and a social life.  It’s back to Friday nights at football games and crawling out of bed each Monday already counting down to the weekend.

High school is a place unlike any other. It is the place where the big-‘n-bad football player can also be one of the brightest kids in his class. It’s where dreams of college and the future are born. It’s where minds are opened and shaped every day.

The need to fit in to the standards of everyone else can sometimes be suffocating. As a high schooler, dating in high school sometimes seems to be what everything revolves around and it’s so easy to let it become the center of my life. I’m finding that balancing my crazy school schedule, friends, and family has become harder than I ever thought it would be.

This month the scales of life are thrown off a bit and school loses some of its importance. I know it’s not the way it should be but sometimes it’s just the way it is. With news of homecoming flooding the school and the rush to find the perfect everything on, it’s easy to get caught up.

This year I was looking forward to the perfect dance with all the perfect things: date, dress, and great shoes. But the balances were tipped again, this time leaning towards family.

Fairhope’s homecoming is September 18th but the time until then will be spent cherishing my family. Instead of being remembered as the “perfect” homecoming night, this year it will be known as the last night where I can have a carefree night with my brother. It’s the last night he’ll tease me and “bully” my boyfriend. It’s his last night in a place that’s been home his entire life.

September 19th he’ll get up, tell his wife and daughter goodbye, and leave for boot camp on his first day as a member of the United States Navy. September 18th is our last night to be joking brother and sister. We’ll shove the cares of the world aside, if only for a night.

I’ve always been appreciative of the servicemen and women of our country. I was raised to honor our soldiers for their sacrifices, put my hand over my heart at the sound of our national anthem, and respect this nation even when I disagree with where it’s going. Two years ago I learned the reality that a solider dying for his country makes him so much more than just a statistic. I know the weight of the sound of taps floating across a cemetery. It wasn’t until recently that I really realized just how much of an impact their call to duty has on their families. In a day and age where a president announcing the removal of troops from a nation we’ve been fighting in for nearly a decade causes more controversy because of who he is than the magnitude of the situation, it’s something easy to forget.

So this month I say goodbye to my brother, but only for a little while. I’ll remember to say a prayer for him and all the others fighting for their country around the world. I’ll remember that each one is a father or a mother, a daughter or a son, and a brother or a sister. These people are so much more than simply numbers on a page, so remember our everyday heroes.