Fast Trips, Editing, and Proud Parents

GK was officially promoted to sergeant on May 1st. DH and I drove down to his base on Sunday, the formal ceremony occurred Monday morning, and we dove home yesterday. Thankfully, DH did most of the driving so I could get some editing done on a completed book. (No, it wasn't A Sprout of Wild!) The whirlwind trip took a lot of planning and extraneous minutia, but it was totally worth it!

For various reasons, including the COVID pandemic, DH and I've never been able to attend any of GK's ceremonies. The kid kept saying we didn't have to come to this one. But I insisted, telling him I wanted to attend ONE adult recognition ceremony.

You see, he didn't graduate from high school. He dropped out for reasons DH and I understood and supported. In our white-collar town, something like this was a major scandal, but none of the three of us cared. Not every person is cut out for cookie-cutter classroom bullshit.

During the ceremony, his 1st sergeant and captain said some wonderful things about GK's service. Their words were genuine and sincere. At the end of the ceremony, GK was called upon to make a speech. GK thanked those who had mentored him and recognized the efforts of his fellow soldiers in getting the job done. It was a humble and sweet speech from an accomplished young man who had failed his public speaking class in his teen years because of severe anxiety.

To say DH and I are proud of the man our son has become is an understatement.

When the unit was dismissed at the end, GK said he needed to take care of a couple things and then he'd meet us for dinner. His captain overheard, came over to us, and said, "Harden, you're done for today. Go spend some time with your parents."

Sarcasm, an appreciation for SF&F, and a love of chocolate are pretty much the only things GK inherited from me. He got everything else from DH. However, we both love him and are proud of him. He's everything we could want in our progeny.

And now when he calls, I'll say, "Hey, Sarge! What's up?"