With boot camp, the saying "no news is good news" is true. If you get a call from your son it most likely means he is injured or washed out. And it was even more true last Thursday following the 54 hours of the Crucible. If you get a call then, your son didn't make it through.
So all day Thursday I was dreading phone calls. After swimming Thursday morning I went out to my moped, put my swimming stuff away and looked at my cell phone — two missed calls! "Oh no!" I thought. "This is it. Daniel got injured or somehow was unable to finish the course." So with dread I listened to the messages. Whew .... They were both from Karen. Safe for now. And that's pretty much was how the rest of Thursday went. Hoping the phone would not ring and if it did, that it wouldn't be Daniel. Thursday was long day.
No news on Thursday means Daniel is now officially a United States Marine. So we are preparing to fly out to San Diego for our new Marine's graduation. The emotions are strong. Pride and fear. Proud that Daniel has done something so amazing and brave, yet scared of what the future holds for him. Daniel isn't one to shy away from adversity. A couple of years ago, he and his brother, Aaron, were walking down Queen K carrying a new PS3 game system they had just bought when a vehicle pulled over and a guy twice Daniel's size jumped out with a baseball bat and took a swing, hitting Aaron and trying to steal the game system. What was Daniel's reaction? He wrestled the bat away from guy and chased him off. The guy and the driver served a year in jail.
And that's how Daniel is. He won't back down from his duty and that makes me proud and scared as well. But for now, I'm proud. WE (the family) are proud of our son and brother. He joins the ranks of an honored profession. The Few, The Proud, The Marines.
Next week we will celebrate Mike Company's graduation (Daniel's recruit company). We'll finally get to see Daniel after 3 months. Our chests will be bursting with pride. Our baby will be a man, a Marine, a hero.
CONGRATULATIONS DANIEL.
1 comment:
What a Cutie Pie! Heres to "NO NEWS" I tried to fast for 54 hours and bailed at 30 hours. Just wanted to feel a little of what they were enduring. I am soooo impressed.
Post a Comment