Celebrate when you can...

By Charmin Foth

With Valentine's Day almost upon us, I am reminded of my first Valentine's Day married to Andy.

When we met and for 8 years after Andy was a seargent in the U.S. Army. Being an Army wife wasn't always easy and sometimes it was downright hard. But the struggles we faced together made us stronger as individuals and as a couple.

Most couples find that the first year of marriage is always hard because you are getting used to one another's habits and traits. Sometimes finding common ground can seem almost impossible. That wasn't the case for us. We seemed to have that part down, we have always been able to finish each other's sentences, sometimes to the point that we read each other's thoughts and say what the other is thinking.

But, the first year Andy and I were married was still a difficult one. We were married the last day of May and in September he was sent to school for training and we were separated for a year almost to the day.

Our first Valentine's Day didn't happen on February 14th. On February 14th I was alone, working 14 hour days and I knew Andy wasn't going to get to come home during that time. We didn't have any money, so I couldn't afford to send him something expensive to let him know I was thinking of him. So, I did something a little unconventional and something I do well, I wrote him notes.

I took one of those little "while you were out" pink message pads that offices sometimes use, and for every day he was gone, I wrote a note. "While you were out... Today the dog got out and I had to chase him down the street, I wish you were here to see it." "While you were out... Today was Saturday and I had to watch cartoons without you." "While you were out... I missed you really bad today."

You get the picture. Every day I wrote one of these notes. Some days that was my only way of communicating with him and he didn't even know it. Somedays were funny, some days were mushy, some days were sad. It was just a little glimpse at how my life was going that day, set aside just for him. We had a set of French doors at the back of the house and each day taped one of those notes on the door unitl I had one big heart outlined on the door. But Andy still didn't get to come home, so I kept adding notes every day, with just little bits of how I felt while he was away. I filled in the heart with at least 100 notes.

When he finally did get to come home for a visit, he pulled into the drive and made his way in through the French doors, where all he could see from the light burning inside the house was a hundred little pink "while you were out" notes. It was one of the best Valentine's day we ever had, and it wasn't any where near Feburary 14th and it didn't cost us hundreds of dollars. I can still remember him pulling each note off the door, reading them, laughing and his eyes tearing up as he made his way through each note. He read them all and he knew I had thought of him, every single day, even when we couldn't talk. He knew he was loved and I loved him all the more for taking the time to appreciate the small stuff.

That year I learned the hard way that the Army way of life meant celebrating when you can, not by the date on the calendar. It taught me that sometimes you can be separated for what seems like an eternity, but that doesn't mean you love each other any less. And, that if you can survive the heartache of being alone, you can celebrate the joy of being together, and it makes the moments you have together that much more special. Sometimes you don't get to hear the words "I love you," when you would like, but you keep the faith that the love is still there. 

Learning these lessons made my life as an Army wife easier, they made my life better. They weren't easy lessons to learn but I thank God every day that I was able to take those lessons to heart.

So, remember to celebrate the moments of life together, when you can, not based on the calendar. It's not about the quantity of time you have together or about the quality of the gifts you receive,  it's about the quality of time you have together, the meaning of the gifts you give and the depth of the love you share.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Thanks for reading.