This weekend marked a monumental moment for Kevin. When he was a young-man growing up in Maine he made the decision that he wanted to become a Marine; that was it, nothing else, that was his calling. At 12 years old...who knows what they want to do with the rest of their life? As unique as it sounds, Kevin did.
Saturday, one of Kevin's wildest dreams came true: he became an Officer of the United States Marine Corps - a 2nd Lieutenant to be exact. No one can understand the overwhelming emotion that I felt watching the man I love standing in front of hundreds of his contemporaries, faculty, family, and friends in the Shapiro Field House at Norwich awaiting to have his gold bars pinned to his uniform. With all my might, I choked the tears back as he handed me the gold bars (my hands shaking) as I looked him in the eyes without having to verbally say "I'm so proud of you." A brief smile from Kevin, is all I needed to see to understand that he appreciated his mother and I being there with him to share the moment. Even now as I sit in an empty apartment on the couch, huddled over my laptop, it brings tears to my eyes to see all of his hard work paying off. Of all the people I've known in my life, Kevin deserves being praised above and beyond for his accomplishments despite his humble upbringing in Maine.
Sunday, Kevin became an alumnus of Norwich University graduating summa cum laude (GPA of 3.6 and above) and was a "Naval Distinguished Graduate." Once again, I wore waterproof mascara in the event that I couldn't control my tears. The ceremony was beautiful and traditional as everyone might have expected. As a group, Kevin, myself, his family and friends enjoyed lunch at Norwich before we had to say goodbye to everyone and go on our seperate ways.
Throughout the six wonderful years I've been with Kevin, I've seen him go through ups and downs, highs and lows, wondering if all his dreams could be attained. I've been there every step of the way through: being deployed to Iraq for the second time, recruiting duty, being a student at Norwich, and now an Officer in the Marine Corps. Not only does his career take him places, but I'm along for the ride as well. As we venture off into this new chapter of our lives, I can't wait to see what time will bring.
Thank you to everyone who was able to come to Vermont to celebrate these wonderful moments with us. Thank you for dealing with the chaotic mess that was our tiny apartment for those few days, and most of all thank you for being our biggest fans. Your support means the world to us.
Yet again, I have taken way too many photos of this weekend. At least they're fun to look at...
Commissioning Day!!
Amelia as expected said it best...great article and photos as well, it really captured the spirit of the whole weekend. Love u and will miss u guys
ReplyDeleteTM