The End of a Deployment is A Good Time to Try Something New

So you are at the 8-month mark, finally! You have weeks to go, you are counting down the days in your head (not online of course, OPSEC and all,) and you are not quite sure you are really at this place.

How did you make it this far? One day at a time? Somehow you are at the end of the deployment. And now things are dragging again. Time is moving at a snail’s pace.

So close, yet so far.

What can you do about that?

Why not start a new hobby? Is there anything you have been wanting to learn? Anything that you can put time into?

What about a new habit? Maybe start working out again? Or cooking different types of meals? Think of something you can change to mix things up a bit.

When the days look the same, they are more likely to drag. Maybe starting a Friday night movie night, or Taco Tuesday night is just what your family needs to get things moving again.

You can also start thinking about after they get home. Will you go on a trip somewhere? Will you guys be pcsing soon after?

Focus on something, anything, other than the fact that the deployment is almost over. I know, easier said than done, but still.

Think about how you can keep staying busy all the way until the day they come home. Keep moving, keep learning, and keep getting out there. That will make the last weeks go by a bit faster and less chance of feeling like you will never get to that well-needed finish line.

Deployments do end. Homecoming will eventually happen. And your service member will be back in your arms again.

What do you do during the last weeks of a deployment to make sure time still passes quickly for you?