Before the East Room ceremony, the militaristic and somber atmosphere was lightened by Romesha's son, Colin, who climbed the podium and examined the lectern, briefly playing hide-and-seek with the bemused onlookers.
Her frustration with him and his intransigence welled up and she was thinking of leaving, letting him lie in his own mess until the orderly arrived, when she noticed that his eyes were not simply closed but squeezed shut, like those of a child playing hide-and-seek.