Being part of a military family definitely has its highs and lows.
On one hand, you become incredibly close to your family, and you may find your crew moving country-to-country over a few short years. There is a strong sense of country in these families — something to be proud of.
On the other hand, partners and children have to go long stretches of time without their family member if they’ve been deployed. If your family hasn’t experienced this, then let me tell you that these are trying times.
That feeling of separation from a parent, partner, or child is hard no matter what the situation.
But these things really tend to hit home during the holidays — in particular, Christmas time. That is approximately 1.3 million troops who don’t get to spend this special time with family.
Iliana is one little girl who knows that feeling as well as anyone.
Her father, Army Captain Eric Morski, was deployed to Nepal for six months, a stretch of time that overlapped with Christmas.
Captain Morski and his daughter did what millions of military families across the country do—
Every night (likely without fail), the two share special time together over video chat. Being able to FaceTime with deployed loved ones comes as a saving grace to so many.
One night, however, was very different for Iliana.
During what seemed at first like a regular video call with her father, she noticed something a little bit different about her father’s surroundings.
The living room he stood in looked familiar. The dog running around behind him looked familiar.
Her dad wasn’t in Nepal. He was standing in their home. In a blur, Iliana was off of the bed and running down the stairs screaming for her dad.
In tears, Iliana ran into her father’s arms, where the two of them embraced for a long time.
When asked about her father’s surprise visit, Iliana shared , “It was everything that I had hoped,… even just a small little hug just warmed me. It made me happy.”
And needless to say, Mom and Dad were pretty emotional too.
“I mean, I had just been traveling for about 30 hours at that point, and had all the energy in the world, and I was tearing up — you just couldn’t see my face. I was a ball of emotions,” the Fort Bragg solider shared with WCNC .
Now that we know the adorable story, who wants to see the actual video?
We knew you’d say yes! we can’t even handle the anticipation. Well, look no further, we’ve got you covered.
Check out Iliana’s special Christmas wish come true below! And don’t worry, more heartwarming reunions after that!
If that doesn’t warm your heart, then nothing will!
This story is one of many, but it serves to remind us all that love will get us through the toughest of times.
If you’re anything like us, you just can’t get enough of these military family reunions.
For more happiness (and tears), check out the videos below!
Ellen is known for her surprise reunions!
Unsuspecting family members find themselves in front of their loved one…on NATIONAL television! We can’t even imagine what this would feel like.
Late night talk show hosts aren’t strangers to elaborate surprise schemes either!
Check out Jimmy Fallon completely surprise one woman who thinks her family member is still overseas! Ahh!
And we can’t forget the dogs!
Whoever said dogs don’t feel emotion clearly has never watched a compilation of soliders coming home. Watching a dog cry like that gets us right in the feels!
Brief interlude to collect ourselves, here.
Sometimes all we need is a really good cry. It just goes to show how empathetic people are. So many of us get joy just from watching other’s happiness.
And if you really haven’t had your fill, we give you the ultimate reunion compilation.
Honestly, I think I cried at every single one. Sometimes we just need a good dose of happiness and sunshine.
