The last 20 years of my life have been spent following your dad around the world, making homes in places I knew were temporary, finding ways to reinvent myself as I discovered who I was, and honestly having to find it in me to be braver than shit.
The small, naive, hometown girl that left Kansas all those years ago at age 20, never knew the adventures that were being created for her. She never knew the challenges that she would have to face, nor the incredible people she would meet along the way that would have a profound impact on her life. Being a military spouse is not for the weak at heart. It takes a special person to start over and over again in a new place, to be vulnerable, to be lonely, to be scared, to watch their spouse walk out the door time and time again to some of the most hellish places on earth, with the profound understanding that you might never see the person you love the most in this world again.
It has been an honor and a privilege to live this life, to
stand on the sidelines and support your dad who chose to protect our nation. This time next year we will pass the torch as an
Active Duty military family and begin our new lives as civilians.
Together we have been through a lot, but we have prevailed through those hardships and learned a thing or two about life. I think most of those lessons we have learned were best said by
Admiral McRaven. Watch the video when
you have 15 minutes. It’s incredibly inspirational. But if you don’t have time and want my cliff
notes of the 10 commandments to living life to the fullest, this is it:
1. 1. Make your bed. Start somewhere. Even when you don’t feel like it, do that one thing, every day.
2. 2. Find someone to guide you through life. Find someone who lifts you up, even when you don’t feel like living.
3. 3. Respect all. Respect and treat others like you wish to be treated. Even if you don’t agree. Opinions are like assholes and everybody’s got one, but you don’t have to BE an asshole.
4. 4. Life is not fair, continue moving forward anyway.
5. 5.Don’t be afraid to fail, and do it often.
6. 6. Take risks, they may not always pay off, but if you never try, you’ll never know the greatness that could have come from that risk.
7. 7.Stand your ground. Don’t be passive aggressive, face the bullies with confidence.
8. 8. Hold your ground when the going gets tough. And it will get tough, you can bet your ass.
9. 9. Lift up others in hope. YOU may be small, but YOU do make a difference.
1010. Never give up. When it gets hard, and you don’t want to go on, get up and make your bed.
No comments:
Post a Comment