KENNESAW - The Memorial Day weekend traditionally marks the unofficial start of summer. The season can be a difficult time to be away from family, especially if you're serving in Afghanistan, as is Army Reserve Maj. Perry Jarmon of Kennesaw.

Jarmon, 44, is stationed at Bagram Air Base, where he commands the 300th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment. Since January, he and his unit have largely dealt with coordinating embedded American and international journalists covering the war. His day usually begins at 6 a.m. and sometimes ends at 10 p.m.

But being away from his wife, Doris Jarmon, and their five young children is something Jarmon said is the most difficult part of his experience in Afghanistan.

"This time of the year, I just miss taking the kids either to the swimming pool there in the neighborhood or to Lake Allatoona - getting out in the water with them on the little pontoon boats or whatnot," he said during a phone interview. "And just being at home and being able to fire the grill up whenever I feel like it, just those freedoms."

At home, Jarmon works as a Verizon Wireless fraud investigator. He has served in the military for 22 years. His grandfather, Oliver Jarmon, served in the Army during World War II.

This is Perry Jarmon's first deployment to Afghanistan. He previously served two tours in Iraq, from 2003 to '04, and from '06 to '07, as a public affairs officer. There is a big difference between the two conflicts, he said.

"Mainly in the terrain. There are more mountains here as opposed to the desert, and that makes a big difference," Jarmon said. He said the high winds that pass between mountains can ground aircraft and make air movement unpredictable.

One of the biggest misconceptions about the war in Afghanistan, he said, is that the Afghan people don't want American soldiers there. That's not true, said Jarmon. The "overwhelming majority" of people want them there, he said.

"Of course most of the news that is going to be reported is not going to be good news," Jarmon said. "But, there is definitely good news going on everyday here."

Schools, hospitals and infrastructure are being rebuilt. Slowly but surely, the government is becoming more stable and taking on more responsibility. And women are gradually taking on greater roles in what has traditionally been a male-dominated society, Jarmon said.

"There is a lot of success going on," he said. "Soldiers are motivated and missions are being done. The three main efforts right now is the government, security and development. To all three of those missions, we're doing a lot of work."

Since taking office in January 2009, President Barack Obama has ordered 47,000 additional troops to Afghanistan to combat the Taliban. On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that for the first time since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks more troops are currently deployed there than in Iraq - 94,000, compared with 92,000. On May 18, the U.S. death toll in Afghanistan reached 1,000.

"It's been a long war; we've been here since 2001," Jarmon said. "My method of coping is the great majority of soldiers died fighting for what they believed in. Even so, the number 1,000 is a lot. The longer we stay here, it was an eventuality that was bound to happen."

As a public affairs officer, Jarmon hasn't fought in combat, but he said he has come under attack on numerous occasions. The tragedy of war, he knows well. His replacement after serving in Ramadi - about 68 miles west of Baghdad - was Marine Maj. Megan McClung, 34, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate from Washington state, who was killed in December 2006 by a roadside bomb while she and other soldiers, who were also killed, were escorting media.

Jarmon named his youngest of five children after her. He also keeps in touch with her parents and has visited her grave in Arlington National Cemetery.

Jarmon's wife is a stay-at-home mother who takes care of their four daughters and son: Kennedy, 9, Destiny, 8, Kalyn, 7, Pryce, 5, and Megan, 2.

"This is our fourth deployment, so with each one I see different changes and almost with each one we've added on a new child," said Doris Jarmon, 42, in a telephone conversation, as children's frenzied voices could be heard in the background.

"With that, I guess the stress and strain of everyday life is what a single mom would go through, along with worrying about their husband or spouse being away. Other than that, I've learned to deal with it and try to keep myself calm and the kids calm. I can't really let myself be free to worry."

Perry Jarmon, who expects to return home by Christmas, said he regularly communicates with his family via telephone and Skype. That makes his deployment a little more bearable, he said.

"My wife is a super woman and it's because of her, that is the reason why I can do what I do," he said.