Tag Archives: military

The Lessons We Can’t Unlearn

Posted on by A Girl

When my husband leaves my eyesight, my breath catches.  It catches from a year of sitting and waiting and wondering.  It catches because once we were speaking and a commotion broke out in the background and he yelled, “I have to go” before the line went dead.  It catches because I sat and waiting for three days before hearing that he was ok. There are things that you can’t undo in your life.  There are lessons you can’t unlearn and habits you can’t break no matter how hard you try.  My habit, my lesson, is that he is never guaranteed to be safe, no matter where he is.  And I can never be sure he is alive, unless I am physically talking to him or able to see him. And so I sit at home, my breath stuck in my chest, until he returns again. He admits that he doesn’t Continue reading The Lessons We Can’t Unlearn→

Online Communities and Military Spouses: How a New Generation is Bridging the Gap

Posted on by A Girl

Last year I was contacted by a lovely woman named Elizabeth who was writing a dissertation for grad school about the military spouse blogging community.  I happily agreed to take part and, once we figured out how to work around the time difference from here to London, we had a rather in depth phone conversation about blogging as a military spouse.  She kindly agreed to send me a copy of her paper once it was finished and I am not kidding when I tell  you that I read the ENTIRE thing and was beyond impressed with her findings and opinions based on what she discovered after talking to a number of us. In short, blogging, Facebook and the entire online/internet phenomenon has changed how military spouses related to each other, connect, form friendships, and even how we view ourselves. If you’d like to read her dissertation, you can do so Continue reading Online Communities and Military Spouses: How a New Generation is Bridging the Gap→

Sometimes Having Your Spouse Home is Exactly Like a Bed of Roses

Posted on by A Girl

Somewhere along the line it was decided that military spouses are never allowed to complain, even when joking.  I’m not sure where this rule comes from, but I find it really ridiculous and very hard to live up to. The fact of the matter is that no matter how often or how long my husband and I are separated, we are still married.  This means that normal married stuff happens, like bickering, fighting, and down right freezing the other out because you are mad.  Being separated may make us appreciate what we have, and I do miss his pile of stinky shoes in my entry way when he’s not here, but it still bugs me when he is. The dirty cammies stinking up the house, the stinky boots and general mess is only endearing for the first few days he’s back.  After that, I fully expect my husband to return Continue reading Sometimes Having Your Spouse Home is Exactly Like a Bed of Roses→