FORT WAINWRIGHT, Alaska - For many of us being a military spouse was the farthest thing from our minds when we said “yes” to marriage. Maybe deployment was also not in your plan 12 months ago; not at the top of your list; not even on your list.
But here you are - a true GI Jane conquering the year-long military deployment of your Soldier. As a fellow GI Jane, I am here to tell you that the sun is coming up over the horizon and spouses of deployed Soldiers in the Stryker brigade are one-sixth of the way through this year-long deployment. Many in other units like the aviation brigade are even further along than that.
If you’re like me you’ve set a few personal goals for yourself to accomplish during the rest of the deployment. If you haven’t made a list, I encourage you to do so. Don’t let your engines idle for the remainder of the year while you patiently wait for your Soldier to return.
For this deployment I plan to renew my passion for an old hobby - quilting. For the last nine years I’ve been devoting so much of my time and energy to my family that I haven’t had the time, or rather haven’t made the time, to pursue my own interests. With each new baby or work responsibility I buried my passions deeper into my basement. Each PCS move I gather a new colored and numbered sticker on my hobby storage bins and another thick layer of dust.
For the last three moves I have listened to my dear Soldier ask me why I continue to move all of this “stuff” around. Well, now I have my answer - deployment.
After my first couple of weeks of adjusting to our new (but temporary) normal, I went into the basement and dusted off my sewing machine and pulled out my bin of fabric and notions. I’ve proudly finished one quilting project and I’m very close to finishing a second. The nights that I would have normally spent snuggling on the couch with my Soldier have turned into late nights working to the hum of my sewing machine.
Take a moment and think about your goals. Maybe you are a newlywed without any accumulated “hobby” storage bins in your basement like mine. But what is it that you want to develop in yourself during the rest of this deployment?
Do you have a desire to learn how to cook? Are you hoping to organize and scrapbook all of those fabulous wedding and honeymoon photos? Do you have dreams of running your first 5K or completing a triathlon? Learning to ski or snowboard? Joining or leading a Bible study? Volunteering with the local food bank? Or maybe you’re the girl who has always stood in the gym and watched a group fitness class through the glass doors, too nervous or busy to try the class out for yourself?
Now is the time to try something new or take time for something you’ve always enjoyed doing. If you have children or a busy full-time job, it is completely acceptable to spend a few hours a week on the couch because we all need to relax and vegetate at times. But don’t allow your children or your careers to hold you back. If your goal is fitness, involve your children or exercise with a coworker during your lunch break. If a hobby is your goal, put down your remote in the evenings and go for it. If it’s an activity that you are too nervous to attempt on your own, find another GI Jane who is willing to try it with you.
You will probably surprise yourself with how much fun you will have trying something new.
Although we all want the rest of the deployment to pass by quickly we should plan for a year of personal growth and accomplishment. At the end of this deployment I don’t want to say I merely survived; I want to flourish and grow.
GI Jane sisters, let’s not sit by and idle to the tune of “hurry up and wait.” Let’s rev up our engines to “hurry up and accomplish.”
Editor’s Note: The Alaska Post features the GI Jane column every other week. GI Jane is a composite character of many different military spouses and offers a wide variety of viewpoints and perspectives. Submit column ideas and feedback to pao.fwa@us.army.mil.
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