Airman returns from deployment, back to motherhood Published July 6, 2005 By Senior Airman Stacia Zachary 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. (AFPN) -- Many parents dread the thought of their children leaving the nest, and some are portrayed as a bit crazed about their children leaving for the first time.Now imagine if it was not the children leaving the nest, but the parent. In today’s diversified military of frequent deployments, more and more mothers and fathers are being called away from home and families.That was the case with Lt. Col. Polly Montgomery, the 41st Airlift Squadron commander and mother of three. When Colonel Montgomery got tasked with a 120-day deployment, she said a temporary goodbye to her family with the goal of still being an active mother to her children while away.“It’s very hard emotionally to leave, knowing that the next time you see your children, they will have grown into richer individuals,” she said. “As a mother … the only real way of accepting this long absence is to continue to be a strong presence in (the children’s) lives through any means available, no matter the distance or difficulty.”For Colonel Montgomery, those means were through e-mails, letters, packages and phone calls home.“My oldest, Charlie (6), would make it his job to read all my letters, and when I called we would just talk about those letters,” Colonel Montgomery said. In one particular instance, the colonel wrote to her son about the dining facilities and how she went about getting her meals.“Knowing what his mommy was doing was important to Charlie,” she said. “That was one way I was able to stay in contact with my children and maintain a very personal and comfortable rapport. I did that by staying involved.”Since one of her children was learning yoga in school, Colonel Montgomery took classes in yoga over the Internet to keep another thing in common with her family.“You need to make sure you stay caught up with them; that is the most important thing I have learned,” she said.While Colonel Montgomery was deployed, she maintained her motherly instincts by providing for her troops.“It was never easy leaving my children, but when I got to the desert I realized I had a whole new family to learn about, guide and support,” she said. Once her 120 days were up and Colonel Montgomery began packing her gear, she also had to realign her focus for life at home.“Seeing my children was such a wonderfully overpowering moment for me,” she said. “All of a sudden I have these little grown-up individuals, and I (was) a little shocked they (had) grown so much. My little girl learned how to talk while I was gone, and I was amazed by her little voice.”The colonel thought she was prepared to ease back into being an active and present mother. After the initial homecoming, however, the world of motherhood sped into high gear almost immediately.“It’s a quick transition, and there’s no easing back into being a full-time mommy,” Colonel Montgomery said. “You can’t just take on things slowly I learned. Within the first day I was cooking dinner, doing laundry and being called on by children for help as if I had never left.”But she did leave. For other parents in the military who may face the same situation as Colonel Montgomery, she offers one bit of advice: “You can never make up for lost time, and you should never try. Allow yourself to continue and make the most out of the time you have in the meantime.”