Well, y’all, fire season is officially upon us. Wildland Man just got home from a long detail away and I’ve been hearing from other fire wives out there seeking encouragement in the trenches.
So, I thought this would be a good time to gather up all the wildland fire resources here on the blog into one neat and tidy, little blog post. That way any new wildland fire wives seeking connection and support for this fire life we live will have everything in one spot.
As I’ve shared with you before, there are many ups and downs to living this wildfire life. These ups and downs tend to land in a particular season of this lifestyle…the downer season is usually fire season, although there are perks to this time of the year as well. But, oh the off-season…Wildland Man makes it home in time for dinner (most nights), we can plan trips and time alone, projects and to-do lists get crossed off and completed, life returns to some sense of normalcy.
When Wildland Man made the shift from his previous career to one of wildland firefighter, I was super excited for him and this new adventure we would be exploring together. I was even pumped about his first fire season.
Man, I had no idea what I was getting into. I was green and naïve and just oblivious to all the hard stuff that comes with being a wildland fire wife.
Do me a favor. Stop for a moment and think about the vows you said on your wedding day. Were they traditional vows? Did you write your own vows? Do you remember them?
What did you promise?
Do you still mean it? Do you still practice it? Do you live out these promises in your marriage today?
Let me take it a step further…
…hold up, I know what you are thinking.
“Well, it’s not like my husband lives them out either.”
“This is just how marriage looks after awhile.”
So last week on Country Wife Chronicles, I shared Part 1 of this post, “Lessons Learned After 5 Years as a Wildland Firefighter’s Wife.” You may want to check it out to get a little bit of insight as to how I ended up 5 years into this Fire Life.
Over the years I’ve learned a few things to help me cope with the absence of Wildland Man while he is away fighting wildfires during fire season. It is always an adjustment and takes some intentional preparation, but I sort of feel like I’m getting it figured out.
It was the spring of 2012 when Wildland Man got his first taste of fire. He was hooked immediately and ultimately began to pursue his passion in the field of wildland firefighting and prescribed burning.
You can read more about how we found ourselves in this reality by checking out the post, “Living the Fire Life.”
Not long after that initial experience, I found myself spending my first summer alone while Wildland Man fought wildfires out west. It was an adjustment I wasn’t quite prepared for. And, now, after five years in fire, I can say that while I am certainly more prepared for each fire season, that first fire call still stings just the same.
I never would have imagined this life for us…ten years post-college and we are both pursuing our dreams, a little delayed perhaps, but here we are chasing the fire life.
As you may have gathered by now, I refer to my hubby as Wildland Man…not so long ago we were high school teachers working in the same building and same department. Now I’m attempting the blogging thing and Wildland Man is, well, all about wildland fire. You can read more about our journey here.
This career change has come with some adjustments to what we were used to before, and a few major moves across the country; definitely some sacrifices along the way…but it’s been an adventure, a whole new world of exploration and learning. It is a life worth living and a life that is uniquely ours.