What can I say? It’s been two months since my last post and life has been a complete roller coaster ride since last you heard from me. I guess the best place to start is the beginning.
On August 7 we went to South Carolina to see our son graduate from basic training from the Army at Ft. Jackson. He had been gone since June 3 and we had only been able to talk to him three times. You have to understand that I am extremely close to my oldest son. Even when he was away at college for the previous year and a half he either called or texted pretty much every day. The nine weeks with basically no contact almost killed me (figuratively of course). I wrote him every day, though he was only able to write back a handful of times. I was so worried that he was not happy, that maybe once he got there he would realize he had made a terrible mistake and there was nothing I could do to fix it for him. How’s that for a “Mother” thought. Kendle is 20. I guess he figured out before I did that he is a grown man and doesn’t need “mommy” to “fix” stuff for him (crap, I hate that!).
We sat in the bleachers at the field on Ft. Jackson with a couple of thousand other family members waiting. They went through all the talk about the base commander, drill sergeants and honorees, ect.. Then they brought all the companies marching out. Of course your heart is thumping in time to the music the Army band is playing as you try to pick out your child from the thousand other young men and women marching by in perfect time. We found his company but they all look so much the same in thier class B uniforms and berets that it seems impossible to find yours. They march by and then dissappear from sight. The speaker starts talking again and though I am sure he did a wonderful job I really couldn’t tell you what he said. I just wanted to see my baby!
Finally all the speaches are finished, the field is completely empty and a voice say’s “Do you want to see your soldiers?” “YES” the crowd screams! Yellow, purple and green smoke starts rising in a line at the back of the field and the loudspeaker starts blaring “Proud to be an american” by Lee Greenwald. We hear a huge whooping holler and our soldiers come running enmass out of the smoke full tilt. they race across the field straight at the bleachers in a chaotic rush and then suddenly stop in perfect formation in a line acrossed. There wasn’t a dry eye in the crowd. I can’t tell you how my heart swelled as I looked at all those young faces trying so hard to look tough as they stood at attention. I was so proud that my son had made it through and was ready to take the next step in his Army journey. Then the voice on the loudspeaker say’s that the soldiers have to stand at attention and cannot move until thier family finds them, so go get em! Did I mention there are probably a thousand soldiers on the field in formation all dressed exactly the same? But it didn’t seem to matter. Most people went for the exit and around the end of the bleachers to get to the field. So we are not most people. We climbed over the rail and under the bleachers and were on the field in about a minute and a half. I had already figured out where his unit was located and it took about three minutes to find him about six rows back. I almost knocked him over in my joy to see him. He looked so darn good! I could see just looking at him that he had changed. He stood straighter and had such an air of confidence just standing in front of his father and I. For a second I was afraid I had lost him (I know, what a selfish thought!). Then he smiled and hugged me off my feet again and said “I love you, I’m so glad you are here!”. Needless to say I cried alot that day. He took us on a tour of his barracks and we met his drill sergeants. It was a wonderful day. The next morning he officially graduated and yes, I cried some more. They had given us permission to transport Pvt. Kelley to his AIT training base in Georgia at Ft. Gordon. We headed out that afternoon as it was only a couple of hours away and got him checked in.
We spent as much time with him over the next four days as they allowed and I could really see the changes in him. I realized my little boy was now a man, a US soldier. He has always been confident but now it really shows. In the way he walks and carries himself. In his conversations and his desire to do things “the right way” instead of the easy way. And he is happy. There does not seem to be one regret about the choice he made and for that I thank the Lord. It all goes back to trusting God to lead us where we need to go. My twenty year old son seems to have figured that out alot easier then I do sometimes. Maybe I need to spend more time talking to Him then trying to orchestrate the lives of the people I love into what I feel they should be.
We left on August 12. My husband going home to take care of our younger son Joey and me to Seattle. My father had open heart surgery scheduled for the 14th and I needed to be there. I will tell you about the next loop in the roller coaster on my next post.
We speak to Kendle almost everyday again. He is at Ft. Gordon in GA, doing his AITÂ in sattelite communications. He is very tired most times we speak, but still very satisfied with his life. I am so very proud of him. I can’t wait until he comes home for Christmas!
Tags: army, child, Ft. Gordon, Ft. Jackson
