Military homecomings are always heartwarming.
Goodbyes never become easier for families who have a soldier in the family. The first one would always be too painful, not knowing what might happen to them where they’re stationed at.
So, whenever they come back, the entire family celebrates.
We’ve seen so many of these homecomings online, and the soldier would surprise his or her family in most of these. It always tugs the heart when parents, spouses, children, and even pets cry tears of joy upon seeing their brave soldier for the first time in a long while.
And this story is one good surprise because of its plot twist.
E2 Ryder McCain never saw his family since he was stationed in South Korea. He was scheduled to come home for a few weeks before being stationed elsewhere again. This was the perfect time to surprise his family with a homecoming.
However, his mom was on his tail.
Stephanie Briles was excited to learn that her son would soon come home. But with that, his homecoming wouldn’t be much of a surprise anymore. His mother even asked which flight he would be on!
But somehow, Ryder still found a way to push through his plans.
He looked up flight details on the date he told his mom that he would arrive but booked a flight for a few days earlier than he had told her. That way, even if his family knew he was coming home, they had no idea when exactly it would be.
Ryder went straight to his mother’s workplace when he arrived.
He stepped in the door, and Stephanie was shocked to see her son. She threw her arms around him (and threw her glasses somewhere!) and hugged him tightly.
“I think I hugged him so tight I just about broke his neck,” she told Militarykind.
After his mom, it was his brother Noah’s turn!
He was in class and was called to the principal’s office. Confused, he brought his bag and walked through the hallways thinking he was in trouble – especially when he saw his mom’s stern face on the other end.
When he asked what was up, Ryder came from behind to tell him he was in trouble. Noah turned and saw his brother, grabbed him, and hugged him tightly. You can see in that interaction that these two share such a strong bond.
Ryder only had a couple of weeks with his family.
So, he made sure he spent every minute of it with them. He made the most out of it by seeing the rest of his family, bonding with his mother, brother, and even his pet!
He is currently stationed in Kentucky for the meantime – a place where his mom said is “drivable” and that they could visit him. One thing that Stephanie learned from Ryder’s time away from them…
“Don’t ever take for granted the time that you have together because it’s precious, and it goes so fast.”
Watch the video below to see this sneaky but heartwarming surprise for yourself!
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
