For Mystical (And all other military family members)

[Mae13]

Thought I'd post it separately, to make sure you and others saw it, in case they didn't follow the 'Quiet Corner' thread...

And again...don't let the bastards grind you down, as U2 eloquiently said. Your sacrifice is one that few can handle gracefully. I don't have a family that must give up much for me, but I remember how much I had to give up as a military child, and how that has shaped me the rest of my life...

Thank you
*HUG*
Mae
~~~

Other spouses get married and look forward to building equity in a home and putting down family roots. Military spouses get married and know they'll live in base housing or rent, and their roots must be short so they can be transplanted frequently. Other spouses decorate a home with flair and personality that will last a lifetime. MIlitary spouses decorate a home with flare tempered with the knowledge that no two base houses have the same size windows or same size rooms. Curtains have to be flexible and multiple sets are a plus. Furniture must fit like puzzle pieces.

Other spouses have living rooms that are immaculate and seldom used. Military spouses have immaculate living room/dining room combos. The coffee table got a scratch or two moving from Germany, but it still looks pretty good. Other spouses say goodbye to their spouse for a business trip and know they won't see them for a week. They are lonely, but can survive. Military spouses say goodbye to their deploying spouse and know they won't see them for months, or for a remote, a year. They are lonely, but will survive.

Other spouses, when a washer hose blows off, call Maytag and then write a check out for getting the hose reconnected. Military spouses will cut the water off and fix it themselves. Other spouses get used to saying "hello" to friends they see all the time. Military spouses get used to saying "goodbye" to friends made the last two years.

Other spouses worry about whether their child will be class president next year. Military spouses worry about whether their child will be accepted in yet another new school next year and whether that school will be the worst in the city...again. Other spouses can count on spouse participation in special events...birthdays, anniversaries, concerts, football games, graduation, and even the birth of a child. Military spouses only count on each other; because they realize that the Flag has to come first if freedom is to survive. It has to be that way.

Other spouses put up yellow ribbons when the troops are imperiled across the globe and take them down when the troops come home. Military spouses wear yellow ribbons around their hearts and they never go away.

Other spouses worry about being late for mom's Thanksgiving dinner. Military spouses worry about getting back from Japan in time for dad's funeral. And other spouses are touched by the television program showing an elderly lady putting a card down in front of a long, black wall that has names on it. The card simply says "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart. You would have been sixty today". A military spouse is the lady with the card. And the wall is the Vietnam Memorial.

I would never say military spouses are better or worse than other spouses are. But I will say there is a difference. And I will say that our country asks for more of military spouses than is asked of other spouses. And I will say, without hesitation, that military spouses pay just as high a price for freedom as do their active duty husbands or wives. Perhaps the price they pay is even higher. Dying in service to our country isn't near as hard as loving someone who has died in service to our country, and having to live without them. God bless our military spouses for all they freely give. And God bless America.

By: Colonel Steven Arrington, 17th Training Wing Vice Commander, Goodfellow AFV, TX.

 

[Mystical]

Married to the Military

Dear family and friends, we are gathered here today in the sight of God and the Department of the Army, to witness this exchange of vows, and see the love that these two dedicated, loving people have for one another.

"Wilt thou, ______, take _______ (who was once reffered to as the "dependent"), as your family member, to dwell together in so far as the Department of the Army will permit?"

"Wilt thou love her, comfert her, via the postal service or over the phone, make sure she knows where the commisary, PX, and church are, and what time she is scheduled to use the luandry room the day she arrives, where ever you are stationed?"

"Wilt thou attempt to tell her more then 24 hours in advance that you will be leaving for two weeks, beginning the next morning? This especially applies to the years you will live in a foreing country!"

"Wilt thou ______, take this soldier as thy wedded husband, knowing that he is depending upon you to be the perfect (well almost) Army wife, running the household as you see fit, and being nice to the commander's wife?"

"Furthermore, you understand that your life with your husband (little that you may have together) will not be normal, that you may have to explain to your children, not once, but twice, and more often in the same day, that mothers do have husbands, and that children do have daddy's, and that the picture of the man on the refrigerator is not the milkman, but the same individual who tucks them in at 2200 hours, long after they are asleep. This soldier is their daddy, who loves them very, very much."

"Wilt thou love, respect and wait for him, preparing his favorite cookies and pictures of yourself and the kids, so he can remember what you look like?"

"And last but not least, put on the outside of your door his 'Welcome Home' sign when he due to arrive?"

"I, ______, take thee _____, as my independent wife, from 1900 to 2200 hours or as long as allowed by my Commanding Officer (subject to change without notice), for better or worse, earlier or later, near or far, and I promise to look at the pictures you send me, maybe not when they get to me in the feild, but before I turn the lights out. I will also send a letter, if time permits, and if not, to somehow, some way, make the time."

"I, ______, take thee _____ as my live-in/live-out husband, realizing that your comings and goings and 0330 staff meetings are normal (although absurd to me) and part of your life as a soldier. I promise not to be shocked or taken by suprise when you inform me that, although we've just arrived at our new duty station, we will be leaving within th month. Yes, I'll have you as my husband as long as while your away, my allotment comes regularly, and that you leave me a current power of attorney and the checkbook at all times. I am a family member and proud of it, dependent upon myself and my resourses. Although I miss you when you are away, I know I can handle whatever comes across my path."

"Now then, let no man or woman put asunder what God and the Department of the Army have brought together. The Army hereby issues you this lovely, dedicated, independent woman, knowing that she'll be an asset not only to your marraige, but also to the mission of the United States Army, which is, as you all know, to remain in a state of "Readiness." By the authority vested in the Bible, elaborated in the regulation and subject to current directives concerning the aspects of the marraige in the Amry, you are now a Solier with a Family Member."

"Best Wishes and good luck."

 

[Mystical]

Military Wife

I am a Military Wife...
I've noticed in my present job
there is a tiny quirk
There is NO respect at all
and it's not concidered work
Well I am here to show you another
Point of view, and give you an idea of what
I really do.

Here is my job description and to better understand, it's written in the Lingo of my Military man...

I am the Ig, complaints come to me
I am the MEDIC, I bandage skinned knees
I am the JAG, and COURT MARTIALS, too
I decide the punishment, how much and on who
I am SAFETY, inspecting for junk
I am the FIRST SHIRT, Checking the bunk
I am SUPPLY, in charge of food, clothes, housewares, diapers, toys, and heaven only knows
I am the MP/SP who secures the door
I am the Soldier who Mans the floor I am the SERVICES who cooks all the meals
I am TRANS in charge of wheels
I am MWR planning all the fun
I am the Bugler, annoucing the 'Day is Done'
I am th CQ and the Fire Dept too, there isn't much that I don't do
I am the Instructor too you see
Because what is learned is taught by me
I am the CO who knows his Troop Well
Sometimes the CSM who really can Yell

I am the 010 ot the E-9 you see
just about everything must come through me

I never go to combat, But certain battles I do face, but when you deploy, you can count on me to bravely guard the post

I am always on duty, I never take leave, No holidays off, it's hard to believe!

I can Never ETS, signed on for life
My Primary MOS is Mother, My secondary is Military Wife

For all my devotion to duty, My LES says NO PAY DUE, Because I am not paid in money, but in the words "I LOVE YOU".

 

[86camaro]

Im going to put my .2 cents into this

I agree with what you guys are saying completly. My father was active AF and is now ANG and has been in for 20 some years.
My mom had to deal with him getting deployed over seas and the long hours that he had to work and she also could not keep a job because whe where always moveing and Im one of four children and we all know that a AF SSgt's pay can not provide very well for 6 people....
This brings the family together because we all work together, and cherise the little things we have and look at the scrached cofffe table and rember the trip to Germany 20 years ago.. and Millitary families and coupels IMO are stronger because they go through so much...I.E. deployments, time away from each other being deplyed to Turkey on your 25th wedding aniversary ect ect.
I thank the millitary for what it has tought me, I have a few peices of furniture some posters, clothes, my girlfriend and the camaro thats it and I value those things, and unlike most younger people I am WAY more mature then them and do not take the little things I have for granted, It has also made me a better person in general and even my parents tell me that when I joined it changed me and Im a completly different person the when I was a civilian and it has changed my girlfriend (future wife) in the same way and I know that we can get through deployments that I get on short notice or no notice and thatmakes us stronger then most mariages.
I hope I was on topic with this.
The defenition of love: You have had a EXTENCIVE carrier in search and rescue and love saveing lives.. you tell your wife: honey I want to sighn up for Pararescue INDOC course because we both know its been saveing lives is my life next to you but you can tell that carrier move would deeply worry her so you say: nevermind honey Ill stay where Im at:
Defenition 2: You have been in the millitary for 15 years and love it but you can tell its takeing a severe toll on your spouce so for her birthday she opens up a package with your discharge papers

 

[soulshadow]

I have to say this is a topic I feel strongly about. I served as active duty AF for 8 years (through Desert Shield and Storm) and my wife and son served with me.

From the active duty husbands point of view I have this to say:

To my wife, thank you for all the things you had to deal with that normal wives do not. The phone calls at 2 AM that caused your husband to rise from bed, grab a green bag and disappear into the night. Thank you for the care you gave my son while “Daddy” was gone for months. The second I left you my heart was broken and I knew it would not mend until the I returned.

Our greetings in the airports were not like the movies, you did not jump into my arms, you were too strong for that. You had to be strong for the hours of waiting you spent not knowing where I was going on the plane I had just left on or when I would be back. I would have told you if I could have but more often than not I did not know myself. The not knowing had to be so very difficult for you and I would have told you if only I would have known.

I spent so many nights lying alone in some distant place, your picture always by my bed, the smell of your hair and the way our beautiful little boy waved at me as I left always in my mind. He was too young to understand but his daddy knew it would be far too long before I could see him again. How many nights did I blow him kisses from a motel room or a tent on the other side of the world? My heart breaking thinking of the time he called a stranger “daddy” in the BX simply because of the uniform the man wore. How many nights did I lye awake wondering why you would be there when I got back, so many could offer you so much better a life than what I could give you. Silent tears you would never hear of as I wished I could hear a different calling but knowing this was my duty.

All I can say is thank you for being the woman you are, for raising my son, for keeping the home fire burning, and to whom ever called you a “dependant” I can only laugh and say that being a military spouse is FAR from that. You are the heroes of the ones that get to march in the parades, the reason we do what we do, the strength we draw upon in the darkness. Bless you all.