theBarnstorming: Graduation

November 12, 2007

Graduation

As scheduled, my brother graduated from his Basic and Infantry training last Friday morning.

We gathered on the parade grounds, where there was a Striker with a large machine gun and tubes for firing surface-to-air missiles.

There was a Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

There was a band.

As the ceremony began, a barrage of machine gun fire was heard from the far end of the parade grounds, and then the Striker and the Bradley tore across the open space, stopped, and deposited soldiers who then proceeded to deploy canisters of purple and green smoke, behind which they crouched and pointed their guns in menacing fashion.

There were some speeches and a lot of marching.

After the graduation was official, but before the soldiers were released, my brother's platoon was called upon for one last bit of training.

And then my brother was officially a soldier.

His drill sergeant seemed unwilling to let go.

I had packed for the trip to Georgia in haste and had, consequently, forgotten to bring the shirt that actually goes with my bright orange toaster tie. Meaning, I know that this brown shirt with blue stripes is not its natural companion.

Though my new Army sweatshirt worked pretty well, I think.

And even better with my navy blue blazer.

We posed for some photos.

Robbi modeled her new shirt.

As the crowd dispersed, I caught sight of a truly remarkable jacket and asked permission to take a photo.

After the graduation, my brother had to register for Airborne, a process that took about six hours. So we wandered around the base for a while. Fort Benning has 350,000 residents and covers an enormous area. Eventually found our way to the Airborne training facility. Sometime in the next three weeks, my brother will jump out of these towers...

...and will use these ripcords to simulate the velocity, angle, and impact of landing after jumping out of a plane.

My mom and I checked out an old plane.

Eventually my brother was cleared for a three day leave.

And so we took him and his buddy, a guy from Syracuse, back to my grandparents' house in Atlanta, about three hours north. It was 6:00pm and the guys hadn't eaten since 7:00 that morning. We bought them a family pack of chicken (12 pieces, 6 biscuits, large fries, and a tub of slaw). They ate it all.

The next day was my brother's birthday.

We had a party and lots of my cousins came. Even though Don Johnson Swanson is the first child on my dad's side of the family and the first among Robbi and her siblings, my cousins on my mom's side have been more productive.

And so I got to practice my budding dad skills on various babies.

Liam and I got along fairly well.

Katjie and I hit it off famously.

Lydia (who is actually my cousin) told me all about kindergarten while playing with Iggy.

Lydia fed Iggy more treats in one day than Iggy has ever before eaten in one day. The treats were "Greenies", a treat meant to freshen a dog's breath. All the next day, Iggy's poops were deep green. And ever so fresh.

Things were going so well with the babies that I started to gain all sorts of confidence regarding my baby skills.

And then I tried to spend some time with Maddie, and I realized in a crushing moment, that I still have a lot to learn.

Maddie cried so hard that she stopped breathing in her rage and briefly turned blue. I kid you not.

Later that night my mom gifted us with our first piece of baby gear: a Becco baby carrier, a lovely, functional item recommended by our friend Marigold, mother of Huckleberry Haske. You may read about her many maternal exploits on their family blog.

Robbi tried on the Becco.

I tried on the Becco.

We are ready to do this, I tell you. Or maybe we're not. It's entirely possible.

The next morning we bid farewell to my Gram and Pop and then we headed north for home.

Instead of castles, the state of South Carolina offered us a beautiful rest stop.

On the way north, we spent a few hours in Durham, NC, where I used to live. As much as I love Chipotle, the original burrito of my heart is produced only in Durham, at the Cosmic Cantina of 9th Street. Robbi had never been. I aimed to change this.