Families of Soldiers Go to War, Too
My husband is in the Florida National Guard. The military is in his blood. He's been to Desert Storm in the early 90's and he's currently serving his second tour in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
I love all of our soldiers and what they are doing to secure others' freedoms like we all get to experience in the United States. However, it is the families that are long forgotten while our soldiers are at war.
The families that are left behind are usually the wives and husbands and their children. We send off packages to our soldiers to show support, but what do we do for those left behind? When was the last time we called the family member of a deployed soldier to see if there was anything we could do around their house? Are there any light bulbs that need to be changed in hard to reach places? Does your yard need to be cared for? Do you need a sympathetic ear or a shoulder to cry on?
I know that a lot of people think that we will just pick up the phone and call if we need help. For some reason that is not always the case. We do not want to admit that we need help. We want to appear strong and put together like our parents and grandparents did during the wars of the past.
We are so wrapped up with just trying to keep a stable environment for our children, we loose sight that there is life beyond our doors. Trying to keep the house clean, the kids fed and homework completed and comforting them when they have fears of their Daddy or Mommy at war. We our lost in our own world, afraid to go outside, waiting for that next phone call so we can hear our soldier's voice once again, and know that one day we will be back together.
Please remember that for every deployed soldier there is probably family members at home worrying, trying to manage at home. For whatever reasons we may have, we do not always reach out for help. I guarantee that if help was offered, it would be gratefully accepted and that would be one less burden we have to bear.
Do you know any families of deployed soldiers? Call them and let them know you are there for them. Just one phone call can make the world of difference.
Published by PamJean
I'm 42 years old,living in NE Florida with my husband and our 3 children combined. I've had many administrative jobs and have plenty of experience with writing. I'm not your typical "suzy homemaker" kind of... View profile
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7 Comments
Post a Commentwow great article
That article was so touching! People should really take what is in here into consideration. Take care and I wish you the best of luck with everything!
Great article. My husband was in Desert Storm, while he is no longer in the military, my hearts goes out to all the families and soldiers. I agree that the families should be called upon just to say hi or lend a helping hand. Hope and pray your husband will be safe along with all the other soldiers. I know that is a hard task but God is good all the time. Take care and take care of your children. You are showing that you are a great backbone for them right now. Though you may or may not cry yourself to sleep everynight just know that you are their soldier!
Great article. My heart goes out to our soldiers and their families.
Good read PamJean. I know exactly what you're writing about and you wrote it exactly as it is. Great Memorial Day piece.
This is a wonderful article. A great read. You really get to the heart and make one think about the family that is left behind. Fabulous!!!!
This is a wonderful article. Being in a family that has dealt with a deployed soldier I think everything you have said is the truth. My step-dad has went through multiple deployments, and everytime that he goes my mother will never admit when she needs help. Nor do any of the rest of the family ever call and see how she is doing. I'm going to forward this on to a lot of people that definitly need to read this! Great Job!!!