Every branch of service has a base or two that are considered “terrible” assignments. Minot AFB in North Dakota is definitely at the top of the terrible list for the Air Force.
When we received orders to Minot AFB, we heard all of the horror stories, but tried to stay positive about this new assignment. Then, the winter of 2019 arrived and brought with it the coldest February that Minot had experienced in more than 80 years. 80 years! When I say cold, I mean life threatening cold! Wind chills as low as -53 and extreme cold temperatures extending for weeks at a time. WHAT???!!!!!
During the long, cold month of February 2019, the wise words of, “every assignment is what you make of it” were difficult to swallow. However, when my son uttered the words, “Mom, I hate Minot,” I was stunned.
First, I wanted to join in the misery of my son and say that I wasn’t a Minot fan either. But thankfully his words kicked me into “fix it” mode. I acknowledged my son’s feeling of the current challenges Minot was giving us and then immediately asked him to list all of the things we LOVED about Minot. I had to list the first three things to love to get him started, but he soon joined in and couldn’t stop! Together, we named at least 20 things we loved about Minot and the current feeling of Minot dislike disappeared. It really was that easy.
Although you may get stationed at one of those “terrible” bases you truly need to focus on the positive, not only for yourself, but for your family.
So, just one tip…
One line of advice…
When all else fails, list the things you love about your current duty station and hopefully the challenging things won’t seem so bad…at least for a little while.
We’re thankful for every moment we have at Minot! It’s not so terrible after all!
