Honoring My Veteran

Being a military wife comes with a whole set of sacrifices and challenges but most of all, pride. Being a wife of a veteran doesn't mean that we leave that military life behind us, the pride just takes on a new form. I love a man who served our country in the Marine Corps for 10 years before putting his boots to rest. He now wears a new uniform on a daily basis, protecting our community as a police officer. To use the word proud can't even convey how I truly feel about this man. When Veteran's Day rolls around each year, I like to take it back to our military days and remind him of those special moments we had early on in our marriage. While we weren't able to be together much in those days, we always tried to make the best of the distance. I would send him cute little themed care packages when he was away, letting him know that he was thought of and loved. I did it all in hopes that it provided him a smile on his dirty and tired face, even for just a few seconds. Those little pieces of home mean the most to these guys when they're so far away from all the comforts of home.

After he would return, you know what he told me was his favorite part of those packages? The handwritten notes from home. In this day, deployments have changed a lot since the ones our grandparents or even parents had to endure. We can video chat daily in most cases, along with emailing, and even still communicate via Facebook while half a world apart! But one thing remains the same: those handwritten letters and cards from the ones we love. Nothing compares to that. With each care package, I would send a specially chosen card. Now, creating Veteran's Day care packages for him, the tradition is the same.

The rest of his care package is filled with all of his favorites and decorated with scrapbooking paper and stickers purchased from my local craft stores. So if you have a veteran in your life, take some time to create a little package of love to honor them.