My first week in the medical field~

[BlackSwordsman]

My mother suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for as long as I can remember and like with your father, we kids didn't think much about it. I eventually joined the military and left home and as she got older and her condition got worse my younger brother and sisters shared the responsibilities of taking of her. I didn't think of her much and was involved with my own kids and wrote or called maybe every two months or so. A few weeks so before she was to go in for an operation to free the movement joints in her shoulders and neck, I called her and she wanted me to go and visit her. I told her I couldn't get leave and didn't go. During the operation she suffered a stroke and died in a few hours. I always regretted not only the fact that I didn't visit her, but the way I treated all my life. My consolation is that I'll see her in heaven and we'll get it worked out.

Being former military myself I can say that even had you asked getting leave on short notice is never an easy task, many guys in my unit were denied leave even when their wives gave birth.