Upon marrying a man in the military I was told by a well-intentioned friend that I was naïve and had no idea what kind of life I was getting myself involved in. Thankfully I laughed him off and nearly eleven years later, I still have no regrets in marrying a military man.
Looking back, it wasn’t the day we were married or the days that my children were born that brings back my fondest memories, although they definitely are high on the list. It was the days in which my husband returned from his deployments that are my favorite. It’s when we finally felt like a complete family again. With recent developments overseas and deployments being extended, I empathize with my Army spouse counterparts who were just told that their loved ones will be away for an additional three months.
The first time my husband deployed his return date changed constantly. Weeks before they were to come home I received a frantic phone call from a friend. Rumor had it the squadron was going to be delayed by another month. In that instant it felt like someone threw a bucket of ice-cold water on me. I had already made the “Welcome Home Daddy” banner and was counting down how many more days I had to do the little things like take out the trash and mow the lawn. Nothing beats the day when the B-1 carrying my husband finally landed on that runway and we were able to tell him in person how much we loved him.
Adaptability ranks up there with love and trust when one enters into this lifestyle. Sometimes I haven’t wanted to be adaptable. Sometimes I’ve wanted to just lock the door and keep us all safely at home. But my husband and my family take on the sacrifice that we face with each deployment, each remote tour and each temporary duty assignment.
Over time I have changed from the person who did not want to be referred to as a dependent to a spouse who embraces what a military wife truly is. Military wives are the ones who find the adventure in moving to a new place. We can juggle our children’s educational needs with our own career ambitions in a place we never knew existed a few months before. We can make a mean pot of chili for the squadron chili cook-off or have a to-die-for dessert recipe. We whisper in our husband’s ear to be safe and we will be right here when they return.
Military spouses have enormous inner strength and no doubt our local Army wives will survive this latest delay. My heart goes out to those who have a loved one missing yet another special occasion. Still I know, in the loneliness of being half-a-world apart, their strength is in the love of their soldier and believing that they too are sacrificing for the safety of our country.
Teddy Contemplating at Tarague
Jeff's Pirate Cove
Out and About in Guam
Drew and I spent the day with what could be seen as the Mommy Brigade. A bunch of us moms and kids caravanned from Andersen AFB to Jeff's Pirate Cove halfway down the island. (Jeff's is a restaurant tucked away from the main shopping district.) We ate lunch on the covered patio and then let the kids play on the beach. Drew and I saw our first Sea Cucumber...which actually looks like a big squishy black blob. They are harmless -- well as far as we know but I will not be touching them to find out for sure. This island is full of critters that we have never encountered before!
In the Cove
The Walkway To Our Front Door
Saturday, September 22, 2007
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