This is Chapter 5 in the Transition Memoir. Catch up here.
I found Five Minute Friday when my son was about six months old. The goal was to write on a prompt word for five minutes. I didn’t have a blog, I had never shared my writing with anyone outside of emails home to Afghanistan. I decided to join in and started posting in the comment section with other writers.
For five minutes once a week, I had a new goal and a new focus.
Leaving the military had left me lost and confused, unsure of what to do next. I had tried to become a fitness coach but that had crashed and burned. I knew it wasn’t the right fit longer than I tried to pursue it. Writing, on the other hand, felt natural. It felt easy. And even though it was only five minutes each week, I could dream of it being more.
What started as an inconsistent outlet became a routine. I still remember the excitement and pure energy the day Five Minute Friday host Lisa Jo Baker commented on my writing in the comment section. I felt seen and inspired to keep writing. After that comment, I decided to set a goal of writing consistently on Fridays for a month and see how it went. If I did it, I would start a blog.
Four weeks later I was researching how to create a WordPress blog. I called it “Airman to Mom.” I wanted to create a popular blog and make lots of money quickly. The reality was blogging had a lot more to do with writing a post and sharing it online. But even though I didn’t start making money consistently for years, I had found a passion for writing and sharing my story. I also loved to learn and there were endless opportunities for that.
What started as writing once a week began to lead to me writing and publishing almost every day. In hindsight, that overwhelming content strategy was not a good one, but I was also learning the craft of writing and seeing how my audience (who may or may not have existed) responded.
I was discovering a new purpose for my life and had found something I loved. I also didn’t know that my first taste of being in a community through the Five Minute Friday group was something I unknowingly was longing for.
As a military spouse who had also served, I felt like an outsider. I didn’t feel like I fit in with the military spouses, and I also couldn’t relate to my friends who were still serving. I didn’t know any veterans, and the only places I thought I could find veterans were places I assumed were full of old men who wouldn’t want me there anyway. But writing with others created a bond with people I didn’t know; we had a common purpose.
In late September, I learned about the #write31days challenge. The goal is to write every day in October. One of the women within the Five Minute Friday community gave prompt words each day in October to write 5-minute prompts. At the time, I was writing a lot but not every day. I got wrapped up in the enthusiasm and decided to commit. I would use the prompt words and my focus would be military life.
The first October challenged me in so many ways, not only because I wrote so many words in such a short time but I talked about my military experience in a way I had not considered. I didn’t realize it then but the topic and my unique experience of service overseas and being a military spouse resonated and interested readers.
Another unique challenge of the #write31days challenge was that you could post your article in a Facebook group with other challengers and then you commented on the two posts before yours. I started to meet other women, hear amazing stories, learn new things. It once again gave me purpose and community — things I was once again unknowingly desperately searching for.
At the end of October, one of the writers enjoyed the community aspect of commenting on other blogs so she created a group on Facebook where we could continue to post. I jumped at the opportunity to be part of a group of writers and this one step kept pushing me forward as I worked to figure out what was next.