About Debi
Posted by debi on March 29th, 2007 filed in GedunkA stay-at-home mother of five sons, I’ve been a home daycare provider to military children since 1992. I was also the “Military Life” columnist for Soundings newspaper for 13 years here in Norfolk until it closed last December. My husband, Daryl, is a Navy Senior Chief who retired after 22 years of service.
As a more-than-once-married military spouse who also spent a few years as a single mother between marriages, I’ve lived this way of life, for all intents and purposes, right next door to you.
My children are very much like your own kids. They watch soldiers and sailors constantly come and go, learning the true meaning of the word “patriot” as they witness the day-to-day unfailing commitment of their friends’ mothers and fathers dedication to their own careers in the military.
Myself, I’ve personally experienced the same joy, hardship and despair that servicemembers and their spouses confront in attempting to keep a family together, a military career up and running and yet, still somehow manage to conduct a ‘normal’ life in the process.
There’s really very little that anybody in our military community could bring to me that I haven’t, at one time or another, personally coped with myself.
Poverty? Yes, as an enlisted family we’ve known what it’s like over the years to be so dirt poor that Hamburger Helper seemed like a four-star meal. We’ve hung laundry to dry in the living room while sweating out payday, traded off one old beater for another and ordained it the Family Roadster. Yes, we have known what it’s like to pinch pennies so hard that our fingers bled.
Infidelity? I admit it inevitably broke the marital camel’s back in our little neighborhood more than once. Deployment hardships, family problems, transfer issues? Yup, been there, done that, too.
For all its struggles and challenges, I love our military community and can’t help but hold its servicemembers and the sacrifices they make in anything less than extremely high personal esteem.
As a community, let’s face it - we are all grasping these days, not only for our own peace of mind but for the future safety and security of this world. We are also reaching deep into our own hearts for personal and emotional sustenance. In the meantime, thank God we still have each other to lean on.
If you ever wonder whether it’s all worth the constant struggle and hardship you go through as a military family member, this video should clear up any confusion. It’s awesome! Click here to watch it.
