<p>I would like to offer the new parents some words of advice and caution.</p>
<p>You are starting to get letters and cards from your swabs. These are what you've been waiting for anxiously and treasure and read and reread.</p>
<p>My word of caution:some of these will not be pleasant. The swabs will vent their feelings to you...you will in effect be their "dumping ground" as they have nobody else to "dump on" other than you. They will feel much better once they've done this, no matter how bad it makes you feel at the time. </p>
<p>Don't get overly worried or concerned...chances are the next card or letter will be upbeat. One time last year when my son was a swab we hadn't gotten a card from him in over a week(he was very good about writing). His last card had been a little down. We were getting anxious. Then a battered, dog-eared card came in the mail...apparently the post office had mishandled it. It was a very positive, cheerful card in which he told about sailing on the Thames, firing a pistol at the range and expressing his looking forward to his stint on the Eagle.</p>
<p>So don't get too high or too low based on a card...the best thing my son kept saying was "I'll never quit..." and he meant it.</p>
<p>The time will go by fast and before you know it they'll been on their Eagle cruise.</p>