Christina Piper
I have felt as if I was living with a stranger. I have looked at him wondering who he is, and then glancing in a mirror wondering who I have become. I have cried over the years we have lost, and the time with our children that he and they will never get back.
There have been times that I have felt so dark and twisted that I have considered the most gruesome of thoughts. I have pulled off the road crying, and wondering how I would ever be able to tell my children that he wasn’t coming back, and I have been thankful not to know what I would say.
I have watched him leave, kissing him for possibly that last time, too many times. I have cried, yelled, and cheered when his plane made a safe landing bring him home. I have swelled with pride seeing him walk through those hanger doors. I have kissed him Hello, and caught my breath when my babies attacked him with hugs. I have done all these things many times.
But I have always wondered how other generations survived. I have looked to them for strength, but have been hesitant to ask. I want their knowledge because I think that we have a lot to learn still. I want to be able to be warned about the next phases that will follow these wars, these wars that are going to affect two generations, at least. I want to bridge that gap because I believe that we have more in common then we all think.
I want to be prepared to help our military families face these wars, as well as, the aftermath of them. I do not want our Veterans to fall to the wayside, as so many have before and continue to do so now. We can learn from our nation’s history. We can call up on former generation’s knowledge, and not look to how different it was but to how much the same it is. We can try to not make the same mistakes that we have before. We can prepare for the future by looking to the past.
These wars are not over, but they also do not end when they come home. I want to bridge the gap between our generation and the previous generation of military spouse. We need to put aside our differences and look to our similarities to support our spouses, now and in the future. I intend to learn. I intend to find out as much as I can to prepare for the aftermath, and to do that I need to talk to those that have come before. I don’t need to compare how hard it is to send him off over and over again. And I do not need to hear about the lack of technology during Vietnam. I do need to hear how they survived. How they made it. Where they sucked and where they excelled. I need to know. We need to know. And I am ready to listen.
Here are some links to find support from generations that have been where we are. Check them out.
