Congratulations, Dave!

This afternoon, the boys and I were invited to Dave’s office to pin on his new oak leaves as Lt Commander. Here is the oath he and two other officers reaffirmed during the brief ceremony:

I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.[1]

We had never been to Dave’s office in 7 years of service with Naval Reactors, so it was a pretty big deal for us to get to see his work space and go down to an area of the shipyard where you would not normally be able to go. We had to be escorted the whole time and no cameras (or smartphones or any other photo taking device) were allowed. Some pictures were taken by a fellow officer, so we look forward to getting those and will send them on.

As we drove home, we talked briefly about the oath. They got to see their dad hold up his right hand and repeat the words above, while wearing his uniform (they rarely see Dave in uniform). We talked about what that means and how proud we each are of LCDR Krug. We talked about what the Constitution is and what it means to serve, doing one’s duty without hesitation or complaint. Dave is about the most steadfast person I know. No matter how much he’d love some down time, he gives 100% to the task at hand, always picks up the phone to answer a call with good spirit (somehow even in the middle of the night he manages to sound awake), never sounds annoyed and goes into work on weekends without a single complaint, not even in private. I really think he is remarkable in that regard. I’d go, and I’d do my duty 100% or more, but there’d be some complaining if it were me! The boys have quite an example in their father and I couldn’t be more proud of my men. (He would be embarrassed if he knew I was writing this, such is his violent opposition to any spectacle being made of such things.) But every now and then it is our right to be publicly proud of you, Dave! 🙂

The only bummer – no cake this time. I really need a cake fix. The wetting down is still to be planned, though…so there’s hope!

2 Comments

  1. Gramma 5 September, 2013

    Congratulations, Dave! How proud we are!

  2. Tam 7 September, 2013

    Congrats to Dave. And to you too Alli. . He couldn’t be so wonderful without his strong wife at home supporting him and being understanding of his duties.

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