Ceremony

It has been an extremely busy week. It seems like I have hardly had a moment to myself. First off, the weekend Will finally graduated from OCS (officer candidate school) and is now a second lieutenant. His dad was able to come down and spend the weekend, as well as his brother and the wife and 3 kids (a 7 year old girl as well as 3 year old twins, a boy and girl) it was madness in our house!

The ceremony for Will’s commission was nice. JD Hayworth came (not that I know anything about his politics) but he gave a pleasant speech. He said that people’s biggest fear is usually public speaking, getting up in front of a crowd to talk, but he did that on a regular basis and so it was not one of his biggest fears. He said that going into combat is a bigger fear for him, and that our officers were putting themselves out there for the country and so fulfilling his fear. I get that, being on stage, in front of people is hard. Although in certain forms it isn’t as difficult for me, like when I was in roadshows as a teenager. However Rhayn and I had to go up on stage to pin Will’s gold bars on his uniform, and that really was stressful to me. Rhayn was excited but nervous. When we got there, she decided that she didn’t want to go up, but I told her that we would do it together and it would really be ok. I held her hand, her little 5 year old hand, and we walked up on stage, with all of the people in the audience looking at us, and did it, just as we had practiced at home. I pinned on the left side, Rhayn did the right. Then he hugged us and we walked off stage.

I am so proud of Will, and he has made me feel good because I am a big part of why he has made it through OCS. It was a complicated journey, they started out with 25 candidates and only 4 of those commissioned (there was another who did at the same time, but she did not start off with them.) He worked hard, it was difficult for us as a family, and honestly it’s not over yet, he still has his OBC (I think that is what it is called) where he will be gone for another while, probably about 5 months. He is working full time for the Army National Guard on the border mission, and still has to do his one weekend a month crap. It will be easier, since it’s not the same training environment that he has been in, it is more like the army actually runs. I am still so proud of him, of his achievements, and I really hope someday I do something to feel that proud of, something he will be proud of as well.