Can any former/current Army married couples share their experiences?

It’s marriage and how you make it work. I was married to my 1st wife and we was in the same unit. It was cool being in the same unit at first but it was better when we was in different units cause we had time apart from each other cause you don’t wanna be around you spouse 24/7 and we even deployed together. Being in the military can work and it depends on what you make of it but if you wanna stay close to home join the reserves.

The concept of 'marriage' appears to be evolving in today's society. The traditional marriage vows are along the lines of I, (name), take you (name), to be my lawfully wedded (wife/husband), to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part. Being 'in love' may not be the same as loving someone forever.

Since you want a positive story, even though this is somewhat dated, My Father-in-law married at the age of 20 in his first enlistment in the Navy. Through Korea, Vietnam, and the ready reserves their marriage lasted over 50 years. They had 3 kids, went through multiple ports, yet managed to stay together & joined at the hip for all those years. While they were both alive it was just about impossible to see one without the other. Was it a 'different time' yes, but the basics were the same, the marriage stresses were similar. Have to hand it to them and appreciate that 'til death do us part' was factual for them - and a real promise they made one another. Wish I could say the same applied to me, but I had to make a misstep before marrying his daughter. We've been together for over 21 years & 6 kids later we're still an item. Love her to death & would not trade her for anything!
What I've learned over those years is to be happy and satisfied with what I have, because even if the grass 'looks greener' somewhere else, it still has weeds, has to be cared for and nurtured, and takes work on both sides to be viable. Realize that when you decided to 'marry' your chosen, you trusted them. You communicated unabated with them.

Communication and trust are the #1&2 things in a marriage that should stand for eternity. Is it always easy - heck no, but it's where you started and you should always strive to keep it that way. Not to devalue #3 any, but your parents taught you honesty is always the best policy and in a marriage, being honest every day keeps you both front and center with each other. Just as your marriage evolves over time as you're together, your love for each other will also evolve with you. You'll only be a newlywed once but you can be a husband/wife forever.

All in all, communication is the foundation of relationships. Provided you are able to be honest in exchanges, there is not very much that can create a storm to tear your marriage apart.

I recall a few other discussions that relate to the same thing - different issues, different situations, but generally the same platform. If it helps, you can find those here:

https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/marriage-and-the-military-career

https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/how-do-you-save-your-marriage-while-saving-the-world-the-forgotten-casualties-of-war-marriage-and-relationships

https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/military-marriages-is-it-possible-to-save-my-marriage

It takes two people to keep a marriage and a whole lot of work between them.