A day after Mother’s Day, the Oregon National Guard headed to Georgia for training in convoy security before deploying to Iraq. Though strong efforts are yet underway to keep the Guard home where they are sorely needed it seems inevitable that next Mother’s Day many Oregon moms will be receiving well wishes from a satellite phone somewhere in the heart of Iraq.

War is very hard on mothers and just like the warriors who fight the battles some exhibit such extraordinary courage and selflessness as to stand out for special commendation. Two mothers, in particular are the epitome of motherhood and I will tell their stories here. Last year I wrote an open letter to three Iraqi women that has been reprinted in many different languages and featured in many cultural events around the country. The first mother is featured in this passage.

“Not long ago I met a Lance Corporal who had determined during the siege on Fallujah that he must enter your home in search of combatants. He prepared and set a timed charge to blow a new doorway in the side of your building. He gathered intelligence assessed the situation and finally gave the order to blow the charge and his men darted through the newly opened breach and he followed closely behind.

You will remember him because when he entered to find your husband and children dead from the blast you were crying out, “lemad’a, lemad’a” (why, why?) You will remember him because when he saw what he had done his knees buckled and the blood drained from his twenty two year old face. You will remember him because he fell back against the wall and clutched at his chest and gasped for breath.

You saw his reaction. You watched him try and shoulder the enormity of the order he had given and when his eyes finally met yours you placed your hand on his cheek and said, “masha, Allah” (God’s will). “

The mother in her, recognized the humanity in him and in the face of her own horror sought to spare the world one more casualty that day and she rescued him, nurtured him and forgave him. Hers was the most amazing and selfless act of motherly love I can imagine and I will always revere her.

MomMy own mother died in a car accident more than ten years ago and I now know her untimely death enabled her to save my son John during his tours in Iraq. Naturally, I asked her to watch over him and though it must not have been easy, she did.

Somehow she inspired him to veer his hummer five meters to the left one day, sparing his squad and him from certain maiming and death. She managed to nudge him right or left four more times so that he survived five primary IEDs.

Once a vehicle-born IED was heading toward John where he had been pinned down for a long while and was low on ammunition. She whispered into his buddy Garcia’s ear just in time and Garcia spun his 50 caliber machine gun around, fired and detonated the device less than fifty yards from John.

As to return the favor, there was that firefight when she pulled John’s attention away from the main action to catch the barest glimpse of two snipers taking aim at Garcia and his other buddies. She froze time for him. She cleared the smoke and allowed the sun to illuminate his targets. She endowed him, at that moment, with the superhuman ability to fire not just one shot but two, “never in a million years”, “once in a lifetime”, “hail Mary”, “only in Hollywood”, shots that saved his friends.

John, of course, marvels at these and other miraculous, inexplicable and life saving inspirations and chalks them up to divine intervention. He is absolutely right and his grandmother was a key intervener.

There is no way to know how she did it, I only know with all certainty that she did. Mom brought him home alive so that he could heal. Thank you Mom, I love you.