Sunday, March 27, 2011

You're sending us where?

I can still remember the day I found out we were getting stationed in Germany. My emotion was somewhere in the middle of excited & terrified! I have lived in the same small town my entire life, where everybody knows everybody & my family is all there. The thought of moving anywhere was scary enough so imagine how I felt to be told I'm moving to a whole different country where they speak a whole different language! 

Being thrown into unfamliar settings, away from family & friends, is just part of the military. That's one of the hard things about being in the service- you move a lot & are always separated from your extended family. Just like almost anything else in the world though, that negative thing you hate also has its positives if you really think about it. I have learned so much & grown as a person over the last year and a half. I have been able to travel to places that never once did I imagine I'd see in my lifetime. Places such as Rome and Paris, the places I'd only read about before. 

Experiencing another continent has also been a good experience for my children. They have been exposed to all sorts of different cultures & people from various places around the world. One of the most important differences I've noticed about Europe is that there seems to be a lot less racism. I guess it's because there are so many countries so close together, so they are used to seeing different kinds of people and so it's no big deal to them. When we go out in public off base, we don't get the same stares I'm used to having to ignore back home. This is also true of the military families on base. Since you have people from so many different backgrounds all in one place, everyone is so much more tolerant of eachother. Sure, you've got your exceptions but not one time has my bi-racial son had the problem of having a girlfriend he has to break up with once her parents find out about him. This was all too common before. I won't ever forget overhearing a conversation between him & my niece about a month after we got here. I heard him tell her in such a happy voice, "I love it here. The teachers don't even care what color you are...they treat everybody the same." That was an eye-opening moment for me & the moment that reaffirmed to me we had made the right decision with joining the miltiary.

All this doesn't mean that I don't miss home. I do. Georgia will always be my home & whether we decide to extend our contract in the military or not, I know eventually we'll probably end up back there.  I am just thankful for the experience and the fact that my kids now know there is so much more to the world than just the town we came from. I hope this opens up their eyes to all the possibilities of what they can strive for and achieve and that instead of just accepting things the way they are, they now know there are other choices.

1 comment:

  1. I love your blog! unfortunately the racism I face is actually enhanced by the military but for the most part it's been great and no issues.

    it breaks my heart some parents were so closed minded enough to force their daughters to break up with your son. as long as he's got southern manners any girl would be lucky to have him!

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