Oh… Military Life! This is likely what brought you to Mission: Milspouse in the first place. It is what binds the military community together with its wildly unique lifestyle.
Whether you are here to learn how to better live in this military life, how to support a loved one who is living the military lifestyle, or to see if this lifestyle is something you may like to be a part of, you have come to the right place.
Here at Mission: Milispouse the military lifestyle is what inspires us, drives our home lives, our moves, and our service member’s career, and gives us a camaraderie like no other. So welcome friend, take a seat and read more about all things that make us who we are and make the military lifestyle a life like no other!
Thanks for the housing allowance, free health insurance, and our custody agreement that allows me to see your property (Whom I call my husband. It’s silly, I know.) on some weekends and holidays.
Thanks for keeping my mind sharp by changing schedules and plans last minute, so I can never plan anything. It keeps me young.
Thanks for the twitch in my eye that I developed from hurrying up and waiting.
My husband’s next assignment is taking us to Hawaii. The kids are super excited about it, especially my daughter. She cannot wait to swim with turtles, dolphins, and sharks—especially sharks.
People always tell me they are jealous and excited for us that we can move to Hawaii and live in paradise. I am careful about getting excited.
Being a military spouse for almost 18 years, I’ve learned that plans could change overnight, and they did for our family.
“See you soon,” I say. I give Andre a kiss and Autumn a high five. They are going on a father-daughter walk around beautiful Fort Leavenworth. Autumn is in the hiking pack (the fatherhood version of a rucksack). It has become a regular activity during COVID-19, giving me the chance to focus without my curious and energetic little lady running around the house.
I watch them walk down the street and am overcome with both gratitude and a building sense of fear and sadness. This walk, on a military post, will be safe for my black husband and mixed-race daughter.
So, here we are… A freshly redeployed soldier, a graduated senior, and a spouse who finds herself reluctant to leave an amazing job and incredible neighbors. We sold the house and are about to embark on a shaky PCS across the country during the great Pandemic, and by the way, it’s move number 13.
Lucky 13…What could possibly go wrong?
As I try not to stress out over the logistics of this particular move, I decided to retrain my brain by reflecting on our past 12 moves and the lessons and blessings each one of those moves gave to us.
You don’t want to hear this from me. Clearly, it isn’t mine to say. I am a white girl trying to write something about racism against black people. I’m writing it because…
I stood in the cemetery with my friend and her mom, visiting a gravesite of someone unknown to me. My friend’s mom is a funny lady. You should hear her joke about ladies selling more than a sandwich.
But, I wasn’t laughing as I stood in the cemetery with my friend and her mom visiting a gravesite of someone unknown to me. I was in shock after my friend’s mom made a comment about “my people.”
In times of crisis, communication from leadership is crucial to the integrity of the organization and the people in it. Depending in which part of the world you reside, more than likely you have recently been in quarantine for a significant amount of time as we #stayhome in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. Leaders have been called to action and forced to navigate uncharted territories as they adjust to the communication challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As we continue to sift through theories and projections for the future, how can leaders sustain momentum as we ask, “How does one lead in quarantine?”
Mission: Milspouse is a
501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
EIN Number: 88-1604492
hello@missionmilspouse.org
P.O. Box 641341
El Paso, TX 79904