As 2024 ends, we will all undoubtedly find ourselves reflecting on the past 12 months and all the growth and challenges we faced. The Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA) Military Spouse Writing Program was such a big part of my personal growth and development for the past year, and today, I am sharing my personal thoughts and experiences.

About Me

My name is Poli Dimitrova, and I am a foreign national – originally from Bulgaria. I became a military spouse 3 years ago when I married my husband, an active-duty Navy Corpsman. I have also been a mom for the last 2 years to a charming little boy who never seems tired and loves running around. Since I have a travel blog and have been a freelance travel writer for a while, I had some experience before joining the ASYMCA Military Spouse Writing Program. Still, I was thrilled when I realized I had been accepted.

Initial Expectations and Experience

Being a first-time mom without any support system in a foreign country can be tough. When combined with the uncertainties of military life and the active-duty spouse’s absence, the challenges seem to be even more overwhelming. My initial wish to join the ASYMCA military spouse writing program was to find an outlet for some of my feelings, to add a change to what seemed to be the same day every day, and to find a community of like-minded people.

As the well-known phrase “Practice Makes Perfect” says, I was aware the more I wrote, the more my writing would improve, so that was a nice bonus to being part of the program. Little did I know, though, how much I would learn and how much I would be looking forward to each workshop. I particularly remember the SEO workshop we had. I believed that I had some knowledge of SEO already, but only 5 minutes into the session, I realized how wrong I was. Taking in all the information from that session and immediately implementing the tips and tricks into my travel blog has improved my website’s Google rankings tremendously in the past few months. And I must say a big “Thank You!” to the team for taking the time and sharing insights on successfully ranking on Google through SEO strategies!

Skills and Knowledge Gained

The SEO workshop is just an example of some of the knowledge I gained through the ASYMCA Military Spouse Writing Program. The scope of skills that I got to work on and improve, though, does not end there.

Learning new writing techniques and styles, as well as focusing on clarity and finding my own tone, would be impossible to achieve without the program and the support received by the team.

Last but not least, everyone who has experience with writing can tell how difficult it is to revise and edit your work, especially when you have to “Kill your own writing.” Removing parts of your work and cutting elements when you spend so much time coming up with them, to begin with, is one of the biggest challenges for every writer. During the last 12 months, though, I learned how to let go of my work easily, knowing that my overall writing will be stronger, more engaging, and more concise at the end.

Challenges and Growth

Not only are challenges inevitable, but they are also part of the way we grow and progress through the different stages of life. During the last 12 months, I received a few article topics that were out of my alley. Taking additional time to research, not giving up, and learning how to receive and process feedback were the most crucial steps to overcoming the challenging topics and still creating a piece of work I am proud of!

Once again I was reminded how important it is to step out of your comfort zone because this is the best way to keep growing and developing. As military spouses, we must face this constantly as we are always faced with new environments, people, and scenarios.

Finding Purpose

The ASYMCA program was an experience I thoroughly enjoyed, and I never want to take it for granted. The lessons and skills learned were crucial to making me a better writer, however, what was invaluable was the way the program shaped me and changed my mindset as a person. Having those extra tasks on my days completely differed from my normal stay-at-home mom life. I was looking forward to my son’s nap time so I could sit down and share my thoughts and experiences with other military spouses, who would hopefully find inspiration and help in my words. The feeling of achievement after I had completed a draft gave me purpose and made me happier, more patient, and overall a better mother for my child as well!

So, if you are also unsure what the new year will bring but want to challenge yourself to grow more and become a better version of yourself, take the leap and step out of your comfort zone. Regardless of whether it’s joining the ASYMCA Military Spouse Writing Program or if it’s just joining a spouse club and trying to make new friends – you should go for it! Take the chance, you will not regret it!

APPLY TODAY