Diary of a Deployment 2: Finding the Positive

My name is Jackie and I am an Army wife. My husband has served for five years and has been fortunate enough (in my eyes, not so much his), to be assigned to non-deploying units. Everything changed the day he informed me that he had to deploy. I invite you to join us as I chronicle our journey.

Mixed Emotions

When my husband broke the news to me, I was shell-shocked. After my initial sadness subsided — and I feel weird admitting this — I got excited. What is even stranger is that my husband was excited as well. Talk about survival skills!

I tried to wrap my mind around this 180-degree change in our attitudes. I was sure that this outlook could (and would) change on any given day, but in the meantime we decided to celebrate our silver linings.  

Why were we excited? Where did this come from? My husband and I sat down to discuss what we were actually looking forward to. Here is what we found:

• He has always wanted to deploy. When my husband joined the military it was with a willingness and intention to deploy. He can utilize his training, live out his dream and finally earn that patch.
• His buddies are deploying too. Coincidentally, his friends who are now spread out across the globe, are also heading to the same base. Their plan is to “get swole and grow mustaches.” Go for it, honey!
• We’re going to pocket extra cash. In addition to our increased pay incentives, we’ll save on gas, food, cell phones, water, and electricity while he is gone. More in and less out is a win!
• Absence makes the heart grow fonder. Deployment won’t necessarily change a relationship, but the idea of care packages, new experiences, and missing each other has the potential to spice things up…or not. We’ll see though, won’t we?
• I love a good challenge. This milspouse is psyched to see just how well I do while flying solo. I am excited to give it my all when it comes to my professional work, my children and my home. Wonder Woman mode — engage!
• Prime time for ME time. I will look forward to my new workout motivation, watching chick flicks, and spending both time alone and with my girls. I have a community that supports and cares about me. That feels pretty great.

Making the Most of It

I’ll be honest, we just want this thing over and done with. We were given six months to sweat it out and the stress has loomed for a very long time.

Luckily we have the right idea — look for the positives. We really have no idea of what is to come, we just know that it is something big.

Stay tuned for upcoming installments of the Diary of a Deployment Series. 

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Jackie Toops

A self-described “Jackie of All Trades,” former Army wife Jackie Toops enjoys exploring the various facets of her personality by chronicling military life, world travels, family, her love of the arts and more. Her academic background is in the fields of Interdisciplinary Humanities, Museum Studies and Nonprofit Management, and she has overseen public relations for museums, galleries and universities. Jackie’s articles have been featured on Army Wife 101, Wall Street International Magazine, SoFluential, HomeAway, Military Biz Connection and FamiliesGo. While stationed in Germany, she regularly discussed her articles on-air with the Armed Forces Network in Wiesbaden. A mother of two, Jackie enjoys coffee, freelance writing, languages and discovering new ways to express herself. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

A self-described “Jackie of All Trades,” former Army wife Jackie Toops enjoys exploring the various facets of her personality by chronicling military life, world travels, family, her love of the arts and more. Her academic background is in the fields of Interdisciplinary Humanities, Museum Studies and Nonprofit Management, and she has overseen public relations for museums, galleries and universities. Jackie’s articles have been featured on Army Wife 101, Wall Street International Magazine, SoFluential, HomeAway, Military Biz Connection and FamiliesGo. While stationed in Germany, she regularly discussed her articles on-air with the Armed Forces Network in Wiesbaden. A mother of two, Jackie enjoys coffee, freelance writing, languages and discovering new ways to express herself. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.