Compass Points – Marine Wife & Mom
An open letter to the Commandant
August 4, 2024
Happy Sunday!
Sundays are a good day for reflection. Compass Points receives correspondence from across the broad Marine Corps community. One recent letter is from a worried Marine wife and mother. With permission, her letter is included below. Compass Points thanks Marine wife and mom for her service and sacrifice.
Dear Commandant Eric Smith,
I am a Marine wife and mom. And I am worried. Over the last few years, I have been hearing so much about your Force Design plan, I decided to investigate it myself. I was not exactly sure what to expect. I do not pretend to know about Marine Corp strategy, but I do know common sense.
I was not always a fan of the Marine Corps. I have become a fan of the Marine Corps over the years thanks to my husband and son. But I wasn’t always like that. Years ago, I was a divorced single mom with a teenage son who was full of energy and looking for a challenge.
I wanted him to go to college and not think about the military. I remembered the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and thought how I would feel if I were a parent of one of the flag draped coffins coming back from war. God bless those mothers and dads. I do not know how I could begin to pick myself up and go on with life.
When my son decided to go to college, I was relieved knowing he would be safe. I hoped he would finish and become a big executive one day. All that changed, however, when my son comes home one weekend and tells me that he is going to talk to the military recruiters. I was surprised. I told him whatever he does, do not join the Marines because they are the first ones in and it is too dangerous.
https://marinecorpscompasspoints.substack.com/p/compass-points-marine-wife-and-mom
