I’m remembering my mother especially today – Dorothy Friend born on April 7 in 1912 in Minneapolis Minnesota.  She lived a full life and passed away peacefully at home in Maui Hawaii in the year 2000.  May she rest in peace.

  1912, a baby photo in Minneapolis

  Omaha Nebraska, growing up

  1936, newly wed

  1943, Mother and me on the left

  1958, Middlebury College, a proud mother of a proud graduate

 family reunion, 1977?, Mother is the happy woman wearing the blue cardigan

more photos to follow as time and searching permit

A long time ago, in September 1959, I set out from Boston to attend a Middlebury friend’s wedding in Evanston, Illinois.   My friend Ginny and I had met early on at the start of our Freshman year at Middlebury.  During Freshman year we lived next door to each other and then in Sophmore year we shared a room in Le Chateau.

   Le Chateau in winter, Middlebury College, Vermont

                    Upon reaching Evanston, Ginny’s hometown, I looked up some friends who were still in the house on Sheridan Drive where I had lived during the previous academic year when I was attending Northwestern University.  Lo and behold, my friends were going to drive to  California  and they needed another passenger.  Having just returned from a 2 month trip to Europe I was looking for a job and the West Coast was one of the areas I wanted to explore…

A while ago Susan wrote a blog  about how in some ways she felt disoriented as an Irish person living in the Northwest corner of the U.S.  A particular disorientation occurred as a result of the words applied to the seasons.  Summer in Ireland has a certain meaning – summer in New England, and possibly Seattle where Susan lives,  is a different kettle of fish.

I grew up in New England.  Summer to me means July-August.  The summer season runs from the Fourth of July to Labour Day, the first Monday in September.  Warm-hot weather, swimming in the ocean.  Autumn or Fall months are September-October-November.  Winter is the skiing season – December-March.  Spring skiing would be in early April.  And for me the Spring months are April-May.  June is rather undefined.  Possibly I define my seasons according to the sports we played – field hockey in the fall/autumn, skiing and…

We are having a family reunion.  More family members arriving today. Following are a miscellany of family photos.  (I was looking for one particular photo showing us all 2 years ago – but these are some I found instead.)

  Whee – another son and 3 more grandchildren are in the air and on their way to Seattle  The 3 sons many years ago- Dublin 1972

 Spring 1037 – the 3 sons’ grandmother holding me and sitting on the steps in front of her are my brother Bob holding Blackie the cat, and my sisters Ruth and Nan are beside Bob and Blackie

1966 – Ian before we were married

  Ian, the father of the 3 boys – at a family reunion in New Hampshire

 Kyle’s family tree – Kyle is our eldest grandson, now age 15

  part of the flight path earlier today

  3 of…