“I remember every text I sent him that day, with no reply. I’ll never forget the terrible gut feeling I had when I found out 3 American soldiers had been killed. It was windy and the trees were blowing, as if Ben was giving me a sign. ‘It can’t be him, it’s finally our turn.’ I remember trying to go to sleep that night, but was tossing and turning. And then came the pounding on the door at 1 a.m.”
‘It can’t be him. My life can’t go on without him.’ It was 10 days before his return from deployment.’: Marine wife mourns fallen hero fiancé on what would’ve been their wedding day, ‘I will stay strong for you, carry on your legacy’
‘The whole night he didn’t leave my side.’: Woman thanks Marine stranger for ‘tackling me, covering me from the fire’ during Las Vegas mass shooting to ensure her safety
“He looked at me and said, ‘We have to get out of here. We can’t stay here. It’s not safe.’ We just started to run.”
‘You accused me of infidelity. I did not recognize this man screaming at me.’: Woman tries to heal family after husband’s suicide
“You were sending me strange text messages. I returned home to you acting even stranger. The paranoia set in. I fell to the front porch screaming. Why would you do that?! Why would you leave me?! Our sons!!! My neighbors heard my screams and came rushing to my side.”
‘I told her, ‘I’m looking for a ‘suit.’ He’s an ex-felon, an addict, covered in ink, going through a divorce, currently unemployed. Yeah, No!’ We married just 3 months later.’
“I clicked into his profile. ‘Hi.’ His response was, ‘Who is this?’ He would disappear for long periods of time – sometimes years – and no one knew if he was alive or dead. Just 6 days after meeting him, I was on pins and needles. I finally called. When he answered, I could hear the difference in his voice. I’m telling you, he was magic.”
‘Our son spotted an older man wearing a hat. ‘Retired US Air Force’ was in bold. ‘May I thank him for his service, mama?’ I cried when we sat down. I was exhausted and overwhelmed.’
“‘Of course, honey.’ I smiled to him, stuffing down my feelings of wanting to explode. He smiled and thanked the man, who shook his hand and smiled back. Then, as we asked our waiter to take our bill, he said it was taken care of. Paid for. In full.”
‘He didn’t show up to work.’ My stomach dropped. I hadn’t spoken to my husband in 48 hours.’: Marine spouse’s husband dies ‘in his sleep,’ urges us to ‘never take a second for granted’
“As my teaching day ended, I heard my phone ding. I looked down to read a message offering condolences to my family, referring to my husband in past tense. I burst into tears. I remember saying over and over, ‘What does this mean? He is just missing. He isn’t gone.’ I realized I needed to get home. I needed to be with my daughter.”
‘Her best friend lost her husband in Afghanistan. His friends would all get black coffee. He always got a big pink smoothie with whipped cream on it. Then, something beautiful happened.’
“One of our favorite regulars walked in to order her usual. I noticed it was taking her a little longer to order, so I glanced over and saw she was crying. The employee on the register was choked up as well, and handed me this post card.”
‘I woke with a softball size lump on my neck. I couldn’t breathe. They looked at me like I had 3 heads. Without saying a word, the doctor packs the wound and sends me on my way.’
“I fell asleep. The blood from the gauze had dried to the pillow. When I rolled over, it pulled the gauze out of the fresh wound. I panicked. I went into the bathroom. This was the most insane moment of my existence.”
‘Were you in the military.’ I replied ‘yes.’ He said, ‘Afghanistan 2010?’ Surprised I slowly said, ‘yessss.’ He recognized me, my injuries, and my face. He never knew if I survived or not.’
“The pilot was there as I got out of my wheelchair to board my flight. He followed me and the flight attendant who volunteered to carry my bag. I fling myself into my seat. It was him. Honestly, I’m still shocked.”
‘Weeks before boot camp, he said, ‘What if we get married?!’ I knew the risks. The statistics were against us. But if I said no, I knew every ounce of me would regret it.’ Military spouse candidly recounts ‘navigating the chaos’ of marrying, conceiving young
“When I got pregnant, we had a fairy tale image of what our little life would look like. NO ONE tells you the effect a baby can have on your relationship with your spouse. We went from the comforts of our family homes to navigating life on our own. From regular date nights and weekend outings to sleeping in shifts. We barely spoke. Our connection and intimacy had gone numb.”
