why your sacrifice means more than you think
Maybe you’ve seen the quote “behind every great man is a woman.”
Or maybe you’ve seen a different version, “behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.”
There are countless iterations of this same quote and you can interpret it as you wish, but I think deep down there is a morsel of truth we, as military wives, want to cling to.
We want to matter. We want it to be said that if it weren’t for us, our families and our husbands wouldn’t be the people they are today.
We want to find our place securely in a world that feels like his. We want to belong and be seen and matter and hold value.
On our best days, we can volunteer with the Family Readiness Group and hold Bible Studies for new wives.
On our worst days we can stay in our pajamas, skip breakfast, have wine for lunch, and cry in the darkness of our closets.
Both places are part of our stories. Both places, the good days and the bad, are part of our journey.
Dear military wife, your sacrifices mean more than you think.
You may go through days, weeks and months thinking your contribution to your family and your community is worthless, but let me remind you how much of a difference you are really making.
The latest survey results from Blue Star Families were released this week and military wives all over are in agreement.
Only 27% of active duty military dependents “feel a sense of belonging to their local civilian community.” Such a heartbreaking number.
We’re women with fierce passions coupled with intense feelings of disconnectedness. This isn’t just a military wife issue, but moving every few years magnifies the struggles of belonging.
But that’s the hard thing about feelings. Sometimes they lie. You may feel like what you do isn’t contributing to anything bigger than you. You may feel like you don’t belong. You may feel like a worthless, unknown piece of discarded trash some days. But what others see doesn’t always match what you feel.
As a military wife, you show support in the most thankless ways.
Every dish you wash, floor your clean, uniform you iron means he can do his job better.
Every tear shed means you care.
Every homecoming gives him something to look forward to.
Every cooked meal means health in the body of a soldier needing strength to do his job well.
Every prayer prayed in earnest means an army of angels protecting the one you love.
Every hard sacrifice means our friends and family continue to live in freedom.
Every PCS you stress about means you are making a home for your family despite the house and location you live in.
Every frustration you feel means there is growth happening in the midst of uncertainty.
As discouraging as it may feel to be the one behind the scenes, your work paves the way for him to step into his calling to serve this nation.
Sometimes the fruit of our labor is never seen or felt on this side of heaven. But your story is greater than you. And without you, your people could not thrive.
Your sacrifice means more than you think.