marching down the bomb run
So, I got back from Texas a few days ago and it was wonderful. I went for Karl's graduation from BMT (Basic Military Training, a.k.a. boot camp) and it was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. If any of you ever have a friend of family member that is graduating and you have an opportunity to go, do it. It is an amazing experience.
I flew to San Antonio last Thursday and arrived in the afternoon where I was met by Karl's parents who had arrived a little before me. As soon as I landed, they picked me up and we were off to Lackland Air Force Base to see Karl. When we got there, the first part of the whole weekend was the Reception Ceremony. This is a special ceremony where all the graduating airmen get to march in front of their families and then the flag is lowered to signify the end of the work day. I really can't describe the ceremony to you and do it any justice because it is the kind of thing that you have to witness for yourself. Once it was over I don't think there was anyone without a tear in their eye. This ceremony was also the first time all the families got to see their airmen for the first time in 2 months. Each flight is announced as they march in and there were about 8 flights of graduating airmen. When Karl's flight marched in my heart completely sank because I couldn't find him. I looked and looked, but I couldn't find him. I looked at the faces of each person but I couldn't figure out which one was him because they all looked the same. I finally figured out which one was him about 10 minutes later. He was one of the airmen in the front row that I had originally passed off as someone else. Luckily, he was in the front because he is an element leader (he yells out the commands when they are marching). If he had been in the back I probably never would have seen him. Once the ceremony is over all the families rush down from the stands to go find their airman. This is the part that I hated because we weren't allowed to touch him. All the families had been briefed on the events for the weekend, and they made sure to let us know that there are no PDA's while they are in uniform. We were allowed VERY brief hugs after the Reception Ceremony and when they graduate. Of course this rule doesn't apply to mom's because no T.I. (Training Instructor) is going to step in between a mother that's crying "Oh my BABY!! My BABY!" and her kid. So, Karl's mom can hug him as long as she wants and I get a two second pat on the back. That was nice. But at least I got to see him. I couldn't believe it was him, the same Karl that I said goodbye to 2 months ago. He looked different, spoke different, he even walked and talked different. He changed, but not in a bad way. He started to cry when he first saw us, but he sucked it up pretty quickly and wiped away the tears. I was speechless when I first saw him because I couldn't believe I was actually standing there in front of him after 2 months. There were so many emotions running through me and I just couldn't move. I was happy, relieved, incredibly proud, and completely in awe of the person he became in such a short amount of time. Anyways, after that he had base leave so we just hung out on base and got dinner. I've never seen someone eat so much food.
On Friday morning we had to be at the base at 7am for the graduation. The graduation was the most amazing part of all. All the flights march in front of their families, and in front of special guests. There were colonels and a ton of really high-ranking people at the graduation that they had to march in front of, so this was really important. During the graduation they walk down the "bomb run" which is kind of a large brick walkway that's out in front of bleachers for the parents. It's really amazing because everyone that has ever entered the Air Force has walked down this pathway when they graduate from BMT so there's a lot of history there. They march in front of the guests and each flight is judged on how well they walk. To me, they all looked perfect and I couldn't tell there were any mistakes, but Karl said I would be surprised how much you can find wrong if you know what you're looking for. His flight won excellence in marching which is a big honor. After they march down the bomb run, they recite their oath of enlistment and it's all over. Just like the Reception Ceremony, the graduation is something you really have to experience in order to understand the full impact of it. I cried at the graduation too because I was so proud of Karl. It was amazing. After the graduation on Friday, and on Saturday he got Town Pass so we went into San Antonio and did all the touristy stuff like see the Alamo and things like that.
Unfortunately, my trip ended on a downer. Karl's parents were supposed to leave on Sunday morning, and I didn't leave until Monday afternoon, so I was supposed to get Sunday just to be with Karl. He had earned an extra town pass for Sunday because he did really well on his fitness testing. We had both been looking forward to an afternoon where we could just hang out off-base and go do... stuff. I won't elaborate, use your imagination. However, there are strict rules about when they needed to be back on base during the weekend. For some reason Karl's parents are under the impression that the rules of the Air Force don't apply to them, so they managed to drop him off late EVERY SINGLE DAY. On Saturday night they got him back so late that he lost his Town Pass for Sunday and had his base leave cut down to just a few hours. After his parents left Sunday morning, I got to follow Karl around the base for about 2 hours while he ran errands, and then I had to go back to my hotel and hang out by myself for the rest of the day. That was really upsetting because we had both been looking forward to Sunday for a really long time, and that Town Pass wasn't just given to him. He really had to work for it, and his parents made him lose it. I didn't get to hold his hand or hug or kiss him the entire weekend, so I was looking forward to Sunday so that we could go back to my hotel and just hang out for an afternoon before he had to be back on base. Didn't happen. I had to say goodbye to him again and all we could do was a quick 4 second hug and a kiss on the cheek. It's better than nothing, but it wasn't near enough. Karl is now in Mississippi at Keesler AFB where he's doing Tech. School. He'll be there for 16 weeks and then he'll get to come home for about a week before he ships out to his first duty station.
Karl's flight (326 training squadron, flight 226) as they marched into the arena for the Reception Ceremony. He is in the front row, second from the right, holding a black bag.
Karl's flight standing at attention during the ceremony. He is now the second person, first row from the left.
Folding the flag after it was lowered.
Karl's flight marching down the bomb run. His flight was first to march down it and they did the best. He is second from the right in the front row.
Karl marching.
Karl's flight during "eyes right" when they turn and face the judges and all the honored guests as they march past.
Karl and his parents after the graduation.
Airman Schuler.