The Military

             wife".
             1.
             After a couple of years on sea duty, he was put on shore duty, which allowed him to skip the tedious six-month cruises. While in Illinois, he met Kathleen Julin, which two years later ended up being his wife. Along with the marriage came two children. Times got extremely difficult when he was put back on sea duty. Not only was he forced to leave his wife behind; he had to leave two young children behind also. .
             While he was away, Mrs. Pittman was forced to take on the role as the disciplinarian and mother. Many conflicts arose between the newlyweds about issues at home. He did not understand what she had to bear at home and she did not understand what was going on in his life. While he was away, his family started to get used to him not being there. The kids were so used to going to their mother with everything that when Mr. Pittman came home, his kids rarely came to him for anything. Luckily, aboard ship, men were given the opportunity to meet with a counselor that coached them on what was to happen when they returned home.
             The longer my dad got to stay at home, the harder it was to leave. He worked eighteen hours a day, which helped him cope with the sadness of being absent from his family's life. There were times that the ship would dock for a day and he was allowed to tour the area. He would see families together, taking walks or playing ball, and it would make him think of his loved ones back home. "Why can't I have my family out here with me?" was a question he often asked himself. To provide comfort, he would write postcards and take pictures so his family would have a chance to share in the beauty around him. .
             Finally, the time had come when he was forced to make a decision: retire or leave for another six-months. Mrs. Pittman insisted that "he was not going to go back to sea", so to make her and the children happy, he decided to retire after twenty-three long years.