Melting Pot

So life has been a little hectic around here, but in a good way.  I went to visit Michael a couple weekends ago, and it seems to take me a little time to recoup from all the traveling.   Sadly, I forgot to get a shot of the two of us together, but I did manage to capture a fantastic one of him in his ABUs. Ladies, please keep the drooling to a minimum.

I've also been trying to enjoy this unseasonably awesome spring we've been having.  I'm thinking all this warm weather is Wisconsin's way of saying, "See, I'm not so bad.  Please don't leave me."  Yes, I'm the one accountable for the beautiful weather.  Feel free to bow down. 

So anyways, while visiting Michael at Tech school I came to a realization.  Probably many people have already figured this out, and I'm just behind.  And maybe in essence, I did know this.  But seeing it with my own eyes just made it more real to me. 

The military is a melting pot.

When you think about it, the military brings men and women from all over the country, and tells them to work together to achieve the ultimate goal:  achieve the mission.  No matter if you're male or female, you're white, black, yellow or somewhere in between, you hail from a metropolis or a small town...you must look past your differences and work as a team.  I think this is a beautiful thing.

If you know my husband, you probably know he's not the most outgoing guy in the world.  He doesn't go out of his way to make friends.  That's his personality, and I love him for it.  But going to BMT and then Tech School with a bunch of strangers that you're now expected to spend practically every waking minute with...well, that's going to lead to some changes.  And in my opinion, some great ones.

Men and women just like my husband are making friends with people they never would have before, either because of prejudices or the simple fact that their paths never would have crossed.  They broaden their social circles--friends are no longer based on skin color, gender or social class.  They ban together within their flights, with their roommates, with the others in their specialties.  It's like college, but way more intense.

Maybe it's the sociology nerd in me, but this realization made me even more excited for our move in a couple of months.  I like bearing witness to the interactions between people so the goings-on of a military base ought to be for me what a candy store would be for a five year old.  Pure heaven.