Add this to section of your website

Ten Years Goes By Fast

September 26, 2024

Almost ten years ago, I moved to Fayetteville, NC to start a job as a contractor at Fort Liberty (it was Fort Bragg back then!).

I didn’t know much about the military, and I’d never been on an Army base before.

I remember going to the visitor’s center so that I could get my pass to get onto base for work, and being nervous driving through the gate on my first day! 

 

I remember feeling so impressed by all of the soldiers and their family members who came to the wellness center where I worked.

 

I enjoyed getting to meet them and hear their stories, and I wondered what military life would be like.

At the time, I’d only ever moved to a new state once (for my wellness center job!), and I wondered what it would be like to have to move every couple of years.

I’d just moved to a new place and was starting over with finding new friends and making my new community feel like home, and I wondered how it would feel to have to do that much more frequently than I had.

Little did I know that exactly two months after I arrived at my new job, I would meet my future husband.

 

I was about to find out for myself what life as part of the military community was really like!

 

That was nearly a decade ago now, and my husband and I have lived in four different states (and I’ve had five different jobs).

It can be tough being part of a military family sometimes, but looking back and remembering the positive aspects of military life is helpful during challenging times.

Now that my husband is retired, the reality that the “active duty” part of our lives is a memory now is starting to set in.

Just like a decade ago, I am in a new place and in a new job, wondering what the future will hold. 

I know there are plenty of new memories waiting to be made on the other side of military life!

 

 

 

*To read more of Heather’s work, cisit her M:M Author Page. To learn more about the spouse transition to civilian life, check out Milspouse Transitions.

 



Author

  • Heather is originally from Virginia, and met her husband while she was working as a health educator at the Army Wellness Center at Fort Liberty. Since getting married in 2016, they have lived in Fayetteville, NC, Washington, D.C., Davenport, IA, and Austin, TX, and currently live in New Mexico. Heather has a background in health education and research, and has a Master’s in Public Health. She has worked with multiple local health departments and nonprofits, and much of her career has been spent working on issues that impact the military community. In 2019, she was awarded the Honorable Order of Saint Barbara medal for this work. She currently works for the New Mexico Alliance of Health Councils, where she is able to utilize her public health background to help people throughout the state stay healthy. She is passionate about helping other spouses navigate military life, especially in regards to health and wellness. In her free time, Heather enjoys traveling, yoga, embroidery and other fiber arts, and spending time with her husband and three rabbits

    View all posts

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

What  Is Motivation?

What  Is Motivation?

What  Is Motivation? The process that starts, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviors is what we define as motivation. Motivation causes us to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to reduce thirst or reading a book to gain knowledge.

Turn on the Hose 

Turn on the Hose 

Turn on the Hose ….At our last duty station, we owned a farmhouse on 5 wooded acres. It was our own patch of paradise, and we raised many animals there. Early on, we had some of the land cleared, fenced, and sowed grass for a pasture.

Mission: Milspouse is a
501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

EIN Number: 88-1604492

Contact:

hello@missionmilspouse.org

P.O. Box 641341
El Paso, TX 79904

 

Pin It on Pinterest

Verified by ExactMetrics