This year’s tree is very different. It’s the first time in seventy-five plus years that I’ve put one up alone. I didn’t like the way it felt. I’m not sure I would have one at all if David and his family weren’t coming to Florida for a few days. But they are, so I do. …
Author: Robert
Christmas Trees
My first memories of Christmas trees were of my dad and I heading to the neighborhood lot to pick out a tree mom would like and dad would be willing to pay for. It took a bit of compromise. I do recall we paid as high as $5.00 for a tree, but most were around …
Errors in Judgement
Since Ruth’s passing, I’ve exercised several errors in judgement. Most are simple tasks run amuck by my failure to think things through. When she was around, we shared daily conversations about life. We discussed our plans for the future, travel, thoughts on the kids and grandkids, current events, politics, and personal economics. We set one …
Dibs
I think all kids, at least all kids my age, have called dibs a time or two. Calling dibs means you reserve the right to something. Everyone else is out of luck. It’s yours. A few years ago, when Ruth and I updated our will, we asked the kids if they wanted anything special to …
Family
I ran across this online the other day. While it doesn’t sum up my thoughts about family, it’s how some families operate. “There’s an old proverb that says you can’t choose your family. You take what fate hands you. And like them or not, love them or not, understand them or not, you cope. Then …
Celebration of Life
We held a Celebration of Life for Ruth yesterday in Florida. We’ll hold a second in Michigan in June. Each member of our family had something to say, but we knew the words would catch in our throats, so we produced a video to share with the attendees. We recorded our words and added several …
Two Bobs
Thanksgiving weekend, Michael, Sutton and I golfed at a course we’ve played dozens of times on our trips to the Coachella Valley. Each time we played there was a “starter” named Bob to welcome us and send us out on the course. We first played the course about fifteen years ago. Bob has worked there …
They Should Be Shared
Ruth looked at the world differently than most. She had an eye for the unconventional. I took that for granted. It was around me all the time, so I assumed there were others with her vision. There may be, but I’ve learned the hard way that people like her are not the norm. Ruth is …
This Passage
I ran across this passage Ruth had written years ago. I recall Sara being one of Ruth’s high school friends. We never met, or if we did, I’ve forgotten, because I haven’t heard her name in several decades. One of my favorite memories of being with Sara was sparked by the mention of a VW. …
51 Years and Sixteen Days
The last few weeks have been tough. As I make my list of things, I’m thankful for this Thanksgiving, they take on a different vibe. Losing Ruth is the hardest thing I’ve ever dealt with. There are no manuals on how to handle grief. You deal with each moment, not each day. They’re all different. …