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Appreciation Month?
May is National Military Appreciation Month. While I’ve enjoyed my tenure as a military spouse overall thus far, I have to say, what a crock of crap. Sure, there are a hand full of people outside the military community who care, but not many. After the dust settled and the flags became sun faded and worn after September 11th, the majority of the public stopped caring.
The majority of the people don’t care that there are still soldiers dying in combat twelve years later.
The majority of people don’t care that there are still soldiers coming home with PTSD who can’t get the help that they need because no matter what the rhetoric is, the stigma is still there, and even if they push beyond that, the behavioral health care system is just plain broken.
The majority of the people don’t care that there are soldiers coming home with other various injuries as the military uses them up and spits them out during their time of service. Service puts a lot of wear and tear on even a physically fit body day-to-day.
The majority of the people don’t care that the families left behind are having problems accessing the programs and services the military provides that are supposed to help. All they see is that the programs exist. If they exist, then they must work, right? Wrong. All too often there is more bureaucracy and red tape than an already fragile family can handle unless they have someone to help them navigate it all.
The majority of the people don’t care that the military health care system has become a joke. They think we get free health care and that everything is covered all the time. This is one of the biggest myths out there (along with free housing). Like all government contracts, the health care also goes to the lowest bidder. The government certainly gets what they pay for.
The majority of the people don’t care that there are military families out there who are struggling to make ends meet every month. Not because they can’t budget. Not because they “have too many kids.” And certainly not because they make more than their private sector counterparts. By the way, where are these mythical private sector counterparts? Who in the private sector does a job like what the military does and is on call 24/7/365?
The majority of the people don’t care that the local communities treat military families like we’re temporary because they know that kn a few short years, we’ll just be moving again. This is especially problematic when parents are trying to navigate the local school systems for their children when schools don’t want to provide FAPE, and they don’t want to adhere to IDEA.
What makes being a military family all worthwhile? For me, it’s knowing that my husband is doing a job that he loves. It’s seeing the pride my children have developed for the traditions, and in their country. In particular, being a Guard family, it’s knowing that when it hits the proverbial fan, it’s neighbors helping neighbors out there all working for the greater good.
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Amanda Griffiths
Blog:http://www.confessionsfromhh6.com/
Twitter @householdsix
Confessions From HouseholdSix Facebook page
Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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