Getting Settled After a Military Move
I am always anxious about Getting Settled in After a Military Move. From the outside, everything looks good. But the triad of who I am as a person is incomplete. Because inside my soul, I haven’t caught up with my mind and body moving to Kansas. This is not exactly my dream military assignment. However, it’s my home for the next two years nevertheless. Sometimes, the Army sends us to places I want to go to. And sometimes it’s just a matter of Getting Settled After a Military Move.
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Getting Settled After a Military Move
Military Moves aka PCS
I walked out of the gas station a little upset. The clerk and I talked about the weather and the upcoming Holidays. Then he added that I’d be seeing him a lot. Because now that my husband was at Fort Riley, they’d never let him leave.
We’ve been here a little over 3 months and I already know I’ll be ready to leave Manhattan when the time comes. My house is settled. My soldier is working long hours and my son has already finished a few semesters at Barton College. And thank goodness, I finally have a full-time job, a part-time job, and someplace to volunteer a couple of hours a week, too. Thank Goodness– it seemed like every day was a few hours longer.
I have to admit, I’ve been lucky. The Army has sent us some pretty sweet assignments. We’ve lived in Virginia and Colorado twice, Georgia, Germany, South Korea, and Texas. And now we’re in Kansas, which, unfortunately, is not so sweet.
Growing up on the Road
I’m an Army Brat
I grew up traveling. I laugh because, at 52, I’ve lived the majority of my life in increments of three years since birth. I’ve had to acclimate to multiple unfamiliar environments. But until now, it hasn’t felt like a huge challenge.
If we weren’t flying somewhere we were on the road. We spent our summers driving to and from my grandma’s house in Baltimore. My window to the world was from the backseat of my dad’s car. And as a result, I’ve driven through every corner of this country– even Kansas.
And up until now, Kansas was just a state to drive through. It was on at least one of the travel routes from California to Maryland. And I remember that there wasn’t much to see and it never made it onto the list of overnight stays. I remember exploring Colorado to the west and Missouri to the east, But never Kansas. And the speed limit, if I recall correctly, was pretty high. Which suited my mom and her lead foot.
Memories are Funny
They Often Don’t Tell the Whole Story
So here we are, living the prairie life in Manhattan, Kansas. I know some of my friends are saying– get over it. And I am trying– hard!!
Getting settled after a military move can be difficult. I can’t wait to see how I feel about this place in two years. Because our memories are funny, aren’t they? They really can’t always be trusted, especially when we are anxious about an unfamiliar journey. It never fails. We always develop a fondness for the place where you live. And if it’s not someplace you want to be, you will not be happy. In my vast experience, you’ll find reasons to hate it.
That is… until. You are almost ready to leave. So as the title infers, it really doesn’t matter what city you . You get into a routine that includes friends and community. And the cycle begins again.
It’s All About Routine
Duty Station Hourglass
When anyone moves, you have to get the kids into school, find doctors, a job, a beautician, and new friends, etc… Of course, you don’t forget the old schools, doctors, jobs, beauticians, or friends. You miss them because the hard work of finding them is behind you. And not in front of you. Those memories loom large over the prospect of starting fresh– again. You have to learn where to get a good cup of coffee, Chinese food, and in my case, a good creme brulee.
My advice for getting settled into a new city is simple. Concentrate on those things, and more than likely, one will lead to the other. Military moves can be stressful because they are so frequent. And generally, it involves shifting realities, logistics, and expectations.
However, in the end, it never fails– a PCS move is like a giant hourglass. You love the place you are MORE and miss the place you’ve been LESS. Until it’s time to do it all over again. So you flip it over and start again. Some things never change. It’s just a matter of time.
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Comments
Hi Stacey. We met about 10 years ago in Germany. It’s nice to see you are still blogging and doing a great job too. I may have an opportunity for you to write travel articles for a friend’s travel agency blog. They aren’t a writer and wanted to know if I knew anybody whi did that. I’ll send you an email to see if you’re interested.
I remember, lol. Please do, I appreciate the opportunity and the introduction. I love writing for travel agency and insurance companies the most because I can have fun with it. Send the info to stacey@duffelbagspouse.com.
It must be challenging moving all over. I moved a lot throughout my childhood… enough to stay settled now im older!
Lol, I don’t think I’ll ever feel that way. But I totally understand.
It must have been tough to move to a lot of different places. But I think it’s fun to meet and be friends to lots of people.
Moving is not easy. You have to consider so many things but its part of our lives. I wouldn’t mind transferring from one place to another. It’s a matter of perspective too.
Moving cities is scary, but I’m lucky I had a great time with it when I moved to Houston! It helped to find local roommates who knew the city really well.
I can’t even imagine what it’s like moving around from place to place as a military family. God bless you and your family! It’s so true that more than just those in the military serve – their families serve and sacrifice right along with them
I used to not mind moving. These days though, I just want to be settled.
Moving to a new city is always exciting. However, with the excitement comes difficulties. Moving to a new city might seem challenging if you are not prepared well for it. The very first challenge that you will face before moving to a new city is finding a perfect house for yourself. Many people have different things and dream about their house.
Moving can be stressful, but sometimes it’s for the best. Hope you start settling in better.
That’s right. Moving is stressful especially if half of your heart is somewhere else.
Moving is a lot of work and pretty stressful. Let time be your guidance and friend. Good luck to you in the new city.
I admire you for moving so much! I don’t handle change very well and am a creature of habit. You are so strong!
Great sharing this stories. Leaving this kind of story is worth keeping.
You have a strength, because I don’t think I could handle it. I just don’t think I have the patience!
I dread moving, we have only moved 2 in the past 15 years and hope not to move anytime soon.
Moving is something that I always dread – especially when it is to a whole new place. So many new things to take on!
We just moved this past weekend. It’s always a challenge for me to get settled and make the new place a home.
I moved a few times when I was growing up and it was always hard to start over. There is always so much feeling of not fitting in.
I have not moved much in my life compared to others. I think it’s all about perspective. I’d love to be able to!
Its very interesting. Appreciate the fact that you have shared your thoughts with such honesty.
Your post made interesting read. Appreciate the fact that you have shared your thoughts with such honesty. I do not like moving around so can understand your concerns.
I moved around a lot growing up. Now I try not to move if I can help it. It’s definitely a lot of work involved.
I actually have never moved around a lot. It is something I always found interesting though, and thought it must be hard on kids to move around… my father was out of the army by time i was born so I never experienced it for myself.
We often fail to appreciate the sacrifices military families make. I can’t imagine being constantly uprooted. I’ve made a big move once and hope to never do it again. Thanks for your tips, I hope they’re helpful to others in the same situation.