eclecticism

Happy birthday, Kevin!

Life 05/04/2004 |

2 Responses to “Happy birthday, Kevin!”

1. John Hanscom Says:
   May 4th, 2004 at 11:38 am

   Notice the lack of “shouting.” One of the great disappointments of my life (the other being Buffy the Vampire Slayer going dark) is I was not there for Kevin’s birth. Being at Michael’s was one of the most seminal (no pun intended) moments of my life.

   We knew almost to the minute when Kev was conceived. I was out on alert at Shemya. We had flown a mission against the “bad guys,” and, when we got back, Shemya was “socked in.” We flew back to Eielson AFB, and, I guess, the unexpectedness of it all made Berta and me “frisky.” By the time I was back from Shemya, Berta, from body changes, was pretty sure she was pregnant.

   The problem was, later in the process, some idiot doctor at the EAFB clinic could not believe Berta (who, at that point, was very thin) could possibly be as “far along” as she said, and placed her conception date a month later. Well and good, but my “birth leave” was based on the “official” due date, and, though I tried to tell my supervisors what was going on, they were tied by regulation.

   I was back on Shemya when Kev was born.

   The only fortunate thing was that “crew change” was the next day, and they sent another “Black Crow” out to replace me. It was also the only time when I got an apology from the AF (represented by my Operations Officer) for something the AF did.

   Mike was at a friend’s house. As soon as I could, I got him, and we went to Fort Wainwright to see Kev.

   Mike, who was then three days past three-years-old, had the idea he was going to be a big brother, but, as with most children that age, had no idea what that meant. He was fascinated by this two-day-old person, and a little unsure what to do. However, Mike knew how to play and decided that was the appropriate response, and, in truth, it was a good one.

   He looked at Berta, and said, “Can I beep his nose?” Berta smiled and said, “Sure, but be gentle. Kevin is pretty little.”

   Not a bad start to a brother-brother relationship.

   When they were in their teens, Mike and Kevin both operated as if they were only children, and this other person in the house was an abberation of some sort. We dispaired if they would ever like each other, much less be “brotherly.” It makes us very happy how close thay are now - in their own idiosyncratic ways, of course, but that is OK.

2. Royce Says:
   May 4th, 2004 at 5:47 pm

   Nose-beeping as an essential component of upbringing.

   Hanscoms are cool people.

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