"I am so looking forward to Saturday," Sarah Black said to her friend Kathryn Whitcomb.
"I'll bet," Kathryn said as she sipped a double mocha latte.
"I have missed Benjamin so much," Sarah continued with a faraway look in her eyes.
The friends sat in silence for a moment. Sarah's son Benjamin was serving with the army in Afghanistan. He was due home on Saturday after having served for 18 months.
Kathryn took another sip. Then she said, "I am so proud of Benjamin. He is a brave young man."