Military spouses are a rare, beautiful breed of human being.

They are the people who can pack up their homes with three weeks notice to move across the country to a new place and secure a house in transit.

They are the people who list one another as emergency contacts after meeting at a potluck at your spouses’ work for an evening.

They are the people you call at 2 a.m. for the random ER trip that only ever happens when your spouse is down range.

RELATED: To The Military Spouse

They are the people who become your family while you’re at a duty station—you treat their kids as your own and vice versa. You show up to birthday parties and jump right in to help and celebrate. You show up with dinner when you need to. You show up for each other because that’s what you do.

The military spouses are truly the heartbeat of our nation’s bravest men and women. They are the morale, the support, and the rock for not just their soldier, but for their children as well, and oftentimes, their entire extended family.

RELATED: To the Military Mom Who’s Exhausted and Overwhelmed

Sure, we knew what we were “getting into” when we married into the military, but we really didn’t have a clue.

The life may be a hard life, but it’s ours.

So to all of my military spouses, happy Military Spouse Appreciation Day. 

Originally published on the author’s Facebook page