How We Survived
Almost every military family will experience a deployment at some point in their military experience.
Obviously this is not universal, but it is very common to see families around base that are temporarily missing a family member due to a deployment.
I have personally experienced my Dad deploying on two separate occasions, and interestingly, both times were very different. Granted, his deployments were several years apart from each other, so there was a large age difference between the events. But this life of deployment is something that most civilian families don’t understand.
So today, I would like to explain to you a short version of what it is like to experience a deployment from the home front.
It starts with the orders for deployment.
Sometimes they will give this order with much breathing room to prepare, but other times they only give you a few days or weeks heads-up. Either way, it is always hard to receive the news.
In fact, both times that my Dad received his orders, my parents kept the news to themselves for the first few days, just to prepare themselves to tell us kids. But no matter how carefully they worded it, it was still a shock to hear, and extremely tough to accept.
We receive the orders, and Dad goes through the training and lectures in preparation for the few months, weeks, or days before the actual day comes, and then…
The tough part is goodbye.
Before he would leave, we would take about a week long vacation away with him. This is a common tradition for military families - to take some time with their loved ones before their deployment.
So the day came, and we would drive him to the airport, and tearfully wait for him to board the plane.
Above most everything else in the deployment process, this part is probably the hardest, especially for my Mom. The few agonizingly short minutes before he left were filled with tears, hugs, and “I love you"s.
And then he was gone.
The word I would use to describe the time that he was away would probably be “endless”. The days upon days living with him away seemed to go on forever.
We were able to maintain our sanity by keeping in touch through letters, care packages, phone calls, and even a few Skype sessions, which we all looked forward to with great expectancy.
But still, time passed very, very slowly.
And finally, he’s coming home.
Excitement grows the closer the day gets. Mom would get more and more thrilled as the time came close, and us kids would become rowdy and hyper. There was an underlying tone of happiness that would never fail to increase.
And then the day would come. We would drive the same rout to the airport that we did many months back when we were dropping him off, but on these times the mood of the car would be completely different. The excitement was static.
At the airport, we would stand together as a group, holding our “welcome home!” signs high, and wearing our red, white, and blue, proudly.
And then he would walk through the gate, and nothing could hold us back.
The months of waiting finally paid off during those few moments of reunion, and I cannot express the joy we all experienced during those embraces.
In conclusion:
These experiences are one of the elements that define the military family life. They’re hard, yes, but still needed. I am proud that my Dad has served our good nation on many different occasions, and I wouldn’t ask him anything different.
So next time you see someone wearing a yellow ribbon or a service star, please thank them for their sacrifice. For they are serving our country as well.
