Military Life

Military life is not for the faint of heart. Everyone’s story is different, and each journey is unique in its own way. My husband and I were together before he ever put on a uniform. We had already welcomed our first child into the world, and when he decided to join the military, we made that choice together. It wasn’t an easy decision, but it was one we believed in — to give our daughter, and any future children we might have, a better life than the one we had growing up.

Starting this new chapter was harder than I ever imagined. Moving to new places where you don’t know a single soul forces you to lean heavily on your family. It strips away all the extra noise and makes you focus on the people who matter most. That first year we were stationed in Sumter, South Carolina, and it tested me in every possible way. I was angry — angry at the world, angry at the people around me, and even angry at myself. I missed my old life, my friends, my family, my comfort zone.

But after that first tough year, we made the choice to move onto base housing instead of living in town. Little did I know that decision would change everything. The girl who lived next door quickly became more than just a neighbor; she became part of my family. She was there for every milestone, every rough day, every laugh, and every tear. I truly don’t know what I would do without her now.

That’s when I realized something important — military life is what you make of it. You can choose to stay miserable, to miss the life you left behind, to be sad and lonely. Or you can choose to open your heart, to connect, and to build a new kind of family wherever you are stationed. If you don’t make an effort to embrace your new reality, it will never get better.

When that first deployment hit, it felt like the air had been knocked out of me. It was scary and lonely in ways I can’t even fully explain. But having my best friend right next door made all the difference. Her husband was deployed too, and together we built our own little family. We raised our kids side by side, helped each other through hard days, and made the best of a tough situation. We found joy even when it was hard, and we created a life full of love, laughter, and strength, even when our other halves were far away.

Military life isn’t easy, but it teaches you how strong you really are, and how important it is to find your people. It shows you that family isn’t just blood — it’s who stands with you when everything feels uncertain.