April is Month of the Military Child and today was designated as a special day to wear purple in honor and recognition of military children.
Military children (you’ll never hear/me using the term brat when it comes to military children) are unique in the sacrifices they make for our freedoms in this country. They have a life that is different than most of their peers. And they reap many benefits and strengths because of their sacrifices and unique life.
My own children are among the 2% of children in our country with a parent serving in the military. They have been separated from their daddy for long periods of time, with a one year separation coming up this summer. And they have had to move on average every two years. My eleven year olds have lived in seven homes and my five year old is on her fourth.
With each deployment or separation they have to say goodbye to one of the most important people in their life and learn to cope with them being gone. I watched the tender hearts of my four small children break as we told them the news of my husband’s next assignment to Korea this summer. My daughter’s first vivid memory is of her daddy’s return from Iraq when we were stationed in Germany.
With each move they have to say goodbye to the friends they have made and prepare to make new friends. They have to have all of their possessions packed up into boxes hoping that they will see them again when a new home is found. They have to adjust to new homes, neighborhoods, churches and schools.
But in spite of…or maybe because of…all of these difficulties, military children are amazingly resilient and positive.
I learned of this resilience and positivity this morning as I sat down with my own children and had a conversation with them about what it was like for them to be a military child.
They had mostly all positive things to say. And when I asked them about the hardships, they only had a few important ones to mention.
I’m going to begin with the positives because that’s what they did.
So…in the words of my own children, here’s what it’s like being a military child…
“moving all the time”
“getting to see new places and meet new friends”
“having new churches”
“getting to be pen pals with friends”
“when Daddy is gone we get to be penpals with him”
“getting military IDs when we’re 10”
“living on post”
“getting to look around at new houses”
“sometimes we do fun stuff together when Daddy has a day off”
“getting to see different countries”
“unpacking boxes is fun”
When I asked my children what was hard about being a military child, here’s what they had to say…
“saying goodbye to friends”
“moving”
“Daddy going to Korea”
“Daddy has to work a lot”
“packing boxes”
“living far away from family”
What really struck me in this conversation that I had with my children is how they viewed so much of their life in a positive light. Instead of continually bemoaning the fact that their daddy is going again soon, they are looking forward to being pen pals with him.
I am reminded once again that I have a lot to learn from my own children.
Being a part of a military family is hard, but it’s also very rewarding.
It takes sacrifice, but it also results in resiliency and strength.