Editor's note: Friday is Military Spouse Appreciation Day. We count down with a blog each day from our own dedicated staff members as they recount why they love this crazy life.
A few weeks ago, I asked my co-family readiness group leader (who happens to be a man) what his favorite thing about being an Army spouse is.
His answer was a long drink of coffee and giving me the slow blink.
To be honest, his slow blink got me thinking: I didn’t really have an answer, either. There are a lot of things that I like, and a lot things that I am pretty stinkin’ proud of. Nothing really stood out as a favorite, though, and that bummed me out. So I tossed the question out to a few of my local Army spouse friends via Facebook message, and got replies over the next few hours.
As I read through them, I tried to think of a way to summarize them that wouldn’t damage the beauty of their sentiments. And when I say that, I mean that I really, really stared at the message window and racked my brain for a way to accurately convey their feelings.
Then it hit me … no matter how eloquent the writer, no amount of rephrasing could ever capture the camaraderie and comfort we’ve found in each other.
Because these people have made such an impact on my life, and inspired a piece that I simply cannot stop smiling about as I write, they deserve for their words to be read just like mine will be. So here it is:
“The friends that I've made, traveling to all kinds of cool places that I wouldn’t normally go.” –J.D.
“I really LOVE how little drama there is with the wives and how most of them try to help each other and lift spirits instead of knocking them down ... I love hanging out with the girls.” –B.H.
“And definitely the amount of pride I have when I tell people that my husband is a soldier.” –J.D.
“I like how different we all are. We come from all over the country and that makes for some great interesting friendships.” –L.W.
“We share a common bond. A bond of friendship and sisterhood. One where you know you can depend on the other no matter the reason.” –M.R.
“Seriously though, before marrying the military, I thought I was proud to be an American ... I had no idea. The amount of pride and patriotism you feel is beyond description.” –J.C.L.
“^^What she said.” –J.D.
As I was writing this, I realized that the people I go to for answers to questions like this just happen to be the answer I was looking for. We are a both a diverse and similar group of people. To put it plainly, as a group, we are an oxymoron.
I get to be part of a family of walking, talking, ride-or-die for each other oxymorons … and that is my very favorite thing about being an Army spouse.
