FIX BAYONETS!

The Army does attempt to help soldiers much more these days than in the past. One of the things they provide for soldiers returning from overseas deployment is Marriage Enhancement seminars. My wife and I went to one in San Diego last weekend and it was much better than I had expected.

When a soldier deploys, he’s not the only one on duty, though he may be getting the only paycheck. The spouse now has to deal with all the tasks at home that both of them used to deal with. This tends to create increased independence on the home front. My own wife had to deal with broken pipes, (nearly) blown up truck engine and the departure of not only me, but also our youngest child, who moved away to college.

Meanwhile, overseas, the soldier is in an environment where quick decision making is the norm and there is little room for discussion. This sets the stage for conflict as soon as the couple is reunited.

Regardless of what the family dynamics were before deployment, you now have two decision makers who aren’t used to discussing matters, both are confident that they’re right, and both expect the other to follow ‘their’ lead.

Marriage Encounter is not required at this point, hopefully, but a good review of communication skills is. A re look at who you married, and why, is helpful as is the opportunity to simply relax away from your rut and ‘date’ your spouse.

These are the things that the Army’s Marriage Enhancement program helps with. Over three days, we watched programs, discussed and practiced methods of communication and enjoyed each other’s company.

It’s a great program, no matter how long you’ve been married. We had one couple that had been married over thirty years and another married less than a month.

This was a low key, low stress weekend and very beneficial. ANY soldier coming back from overseas should consider it.