The Military Wife

This was shared with me by my wonderful friend, another Military wife. I thought it was beautiful and quite accurate and thought you all would appreciate it :)

Military Wife

Lots of moving...
Moving...
Moving...
Moving far from home...
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog...all riding with HER of course.
Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house;
Moving curtains that won't fit;
Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.
Moving away from friends;
Moving toward new friends;
Moving her most important luggage: her trunk full of memories.

Often waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting...
Waiting for housing.
Waiting for orders.
Waiting for deployments.
Waiting for phone calls.
Waiting for reunions.
Waiting for the new curtains to arrive.
Waiting for him to come home,
For dinner...AGAIN!

They call her 'Military Dependent', but she knows better:
She is fiercely In-Dependent.

She can balance a check book;
Handle the yard work;
Fix a noisy toilet;
Bury the family pet...

She is intimately familiar with drywall anchors and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes;
Sell a house;
Buy a car;
Or set up a move...
.....all with ONE Power of Attorney.

She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.
She reinvents her career with every PCS;
Locates a house in the desert, The Arctic, Or the deep south.
And learns to call them all 'home'.
She MAKES them all home.

Military Wives are somewhat hasty...
They leap into:
Decorating,
Leadership,
Volunteering,
Career alternatives,
Churches,
And friendships.
They don't have 15 years to get to know people.
Their roots are short but flexible.
They plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come after them.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other:
They connect over coffee,
Rely on the spouse network,
Accept offers of friendship and favors.
Record addresses in pencil...

Military Wives have a common bond:
The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands; his commitment is unique.
He doesn't have a 'JOB'
He has a 'MISSION' that he can't just decide to quit...
He's on-call for his country 24/7.
But for her, he's the most unreliable guy in town!
His language is foreign
TDY
PCS
OPR
SOS
ACC
BDU
ACU
BAR
CIB
TAD
And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long- distance link to keep them informed;
the glue that holds them together.

A Military Wife has her moments:
She wants to wring his neck;
Dye his uniform pink;
Refuse to move to Siberia;
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days,
A travel brochure,
A long hot bath,
A pledge to the flag,
A wedding picture,
And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.
She follows.

Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.
But actually it is because she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by a man,
Who puts duty first,
Who longs to deploy,
Who salutes the flag,
And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military Husband,
She will remain his military wife.
And would have it no other way.

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Comment by Nicole Wheeler on May 8, 2010 at 8:42pm: My husband and I joined together. We were together 8 years before joining (high school sweethearts). I never earned respect for military wives until I deployed "along side" (if thats what you want to call it) my husband for 15 months. Although I understand and see the hardships of what its like to be "left behind", I believe that wives have a hard time finding the appreciative side of what their husbands do. Please reread this poem. There is nothing positive said about the spouse that is working for their country or family. Just on a lighter note, a side of appreciation to consider, when I was deployed in the heart of Baghdad being one of two females with a 950+ infantry battalion while my husband was out on a COB, 45 miles away, an IED or , missile, or simple explosion even would go off in the distance. All I could do is wait. I understand all wives are doing nothing but wait but please appreciate the fact that you dont have to hear the explosions every time. Still have an American cell phone to stand by and wait for their phone calls. Still have your freedom. Sure, it sucks not having them around. Just imagine not having them around, being a female going outside the wire numerous times a day and having absolutely no way to get ahold of each other. You all talk about having to raise the kids yourself or having to move your household goods to a different state. Just imagine having 2 move every single thing you own into a storage shed because you dont have anywhere else over 6 months before deployment just so you guys can make it through pre-training. Imagine not having a person to give your POA (Power of Attorney) to or having somebody "behind" to handle your bills and finances because both of you will be gone. Not trying to bring negativity but just trying to remind everybody that it can always be worst than what it is. Please dont feel that I do not realize the same from my side. I was female searcher for every house search and checkpoint mission the boys went on and I have the whole world to be grateful for as I saw many husbands, fathers, brothers, peoples sons and grandchildren get...killed and injured in a way they will never be the same again and I thank God every day that it was not mine or my husbands life in exchange, but hurt for the families they left behind.