When we made our PCS move last year, we also started planning our summer vacation for 2012… a trip back to eastern North Carolina. I really believe it helped my older daughter, age 10, accept the move. She knew that in 11 months we’d be returning to the area to visit her friends, eat at her favorite restaurant and dip our toes in the water of the Atlantic Ocean. We all looked forward to our visit throughout the year, and despite our surprise pregnancy and new addition to the family, we saved our pennies and made the 12 day trip to North Carolina a priority.
As I write this piece, I’m sitting on the balcony of our beach house on the last night of our stay on the coast. The air is moist, but there is a wonderful breeze blowing through my hair. I can hear the sound of the waves crashing against the shore line. I can smell the salt, and almost feel the pulse of the ocean as the tide ebbs and flows. I cannot imagine that there is a more peaceful place on the planet. But my heart is heavy because in the morning we will pack our bags and say goodbye to the Atlantic Ocean until next year, when hopefully, we will return. We will get on a plane that will take us “home,” back to Arizona, our “place of residence.”
Nothing about that seems right to me.
I firmly believe that when faced with a PCS move, it is up to the individual to make your new duty station enjoyable for as long as you are stationed there. I just see no point in moping around the house for three or four years because you’re living in a place that is less than desirable to you.
There is always something to do, something of interest, and a cool experience to have… no matter where the military moves you. But it is up to YOU to seek that out. We honestly embraced our move to Arizona with the attitude that we were going to enjoy the adventure. That, no matter what, we were grateful to have three years with no deployments, and would gladly agree to live anywhere, as long as my husband was coming home every night. I still believe this to be true and do not regret the decision to request orders there.
