The summer of 2014 will go down in my book as one of the greatest summers of my life. And I have had some pretty great one, like the summer I met my sons' father, the summer I lived in Madison with friends, the summer I married, the summers I spent at home with my sons, the summer I moved to British Columbia, all in my top 10 greatest summers. (Don't get me wrong I have plenty of top 10 other seasons like both springs three years apart when sons were born, the fall I met Paul and the winter all my kids and I spent the holidays in Hawaii.) Let me explain why this past summer was so great.
When one moves away from their family of origin one loses things like attending distant relatives birthday parties, weddings and funerals. One misses out on sharing the highs and lows of life with others known for decades. One also misses out on all the unplanned visits that happen as people just drop in. Or the support one gets from being close to lifelong friends and family. And when one moves relatively often one loses these types of opportunities even with friends, so this distant-type life can be relatively solitary.
I can't imagine what it was like for my sons when in December 1997 I moved away from them. That choice was mine, not theirs, yet they have never complained because I suspect they understood. So in order to make up for lost time, I wanted, when given a chance, to spend quality time with them. I'd make it easy on all of us by just moving to where they were located. The spontaneity of being able to call one of them and say something like, I need to borrow X from you, when is it a convenient time for me to drop by and pick it up? Or having a son call or more appropriately text to say he would be downtown with a friend for happy hour and ask would I like to join them? Or having both sons after watching a Gopher football game (Canadian friends, that's the nickname of the University of Minnesota teams) stop by for an impromptu dinner. And some of the best times were spent with that grand daughter who changed so dramatically in the last 2.5 months. Seeing her personality continue to emerge and the great care both her parents give to her, well it just warms my heart completely. All of this is simply priceless and I am sad to have to say goodbye. But it is time; I miss Paul and Mike, the cat and my Canadian friends. I miss the Lower Mainland, clear air and pine trees of the Pacific Northwest.
I want before I leave to share a few quintessential Minneapolis icons. The Walker Art Museum, about a mile walk from my place, through a lovely city park, houses the symbol of The Twin Cities, (Minneapolis and St. Paul) Claes Oldenburg's Spoonbridge and Cherry in its Sculpture Garden. Every morning during my daily walks I'd get close enough to see it. The view behind it in the background helped remind me daily I was living downtown in a metropolitan city, a city about the same size as Vancouver, in fact.
And of course for those of us of a certain age, the Mary Tyler Moore Show's lead character by the same name is now another Minneapolis icon. Her image is so important a statue of her throwing her tam in the air was erected on 7th Street and Nicollet, a mere few blocks away from my Minnesota home.
The Mall of America could also be mentioned among the Minneapolis icons. It is reported to be the largest mall in the U.S., but we all know malls' cache is waning. No photos of it, but you can click here to find some. I didn't go to see it because I was thrift shopping throughout the summer and the Mall's prices and thrift shopping are about polar opposites. Nonetheless it deserves mention.
There were plays and concerts, good food and friends this summer. I feel as if I made a small dent in the lack of being with my sons and their wives for previous years. Just to be clear, the condo, its location, the fun of attempting to be a handi-woman for it, the decor planning and follow through, the time with family and friends here in town and out of town, all contribute to my joy. No, after retirement I didn't take a cruise or go to the special place still on my bucket list. I spent time with my sons and their wives and it was so very much more fun than any other option and better than I had hoped it would be. I leave with nothing but happiness in my heart, ready to be with the rest of my family, Paul and Mike and my Canadian friends. Summer 2014, it was a very, very good one.
So for the next few days as I make my way West, there will be no posts. Not to worry, I'm fine. It is just that there are hours per day driving and not knitting.
When one moves away from their family of origin one loses things like attending distant relatives birthday parties, weddings and funerals. One misses out on sharing the highs and lows of life with others known for decades. One also misses out on all the unplanned visits that happen as people just drop in. Or the support one gets from being close to lifelong friends and family. And when one moves relatively often one loses these types of opportunities even with friends, so this distant-type life can be relatively solitary.
I can't imagine what it was like for my sons when in December 1997 I moved away from them. That choice was mine, not theirs, yet they have never complained because I suspect they understood. So in order to make up for lost time, I wanted, when given a chance, to spend quality time with them. I'd make it easy on all of us by just moving to where they were located. The spontaneity of being able to call one of them and say something like, I need to borrow X from you, when is it a convenient time for me to drop by and pick it up? Or having a son call or more appropriately text to say he would be downtown with a friend for happy hour and ask would I like to join them? Or having both sons after watching a Gopher football game (Canadian friends, that's the nickname of the University of Minnesota teams) stop by for an impromptu dinner. And some of the best times were spent with that grand daughter who changed so dramatically in the last 2.5 months. Seeing her personality continue to emerge and the great care both her parents give to her, well it just warms my heart completely. All of this is simply priceless and I am sad to have to say goodbye. But it is time; I miss Paul and Mike, the cat and my Canadian friends. I miss the Lower Mainland, clear air and pine trees of the Pacific Northwest.
I want before I leave to share a few quintessential Minneapolis icons. The Walker Art Museum, about a mile walk from my place, through a lovely city park, houses the symbol of The Twin Cities, (Minneapolis and St. Paul) Claes Oldenburg's Spoonbridge and Cherry in its Sculpture Garden. Every morning during my daily walks I'd get close enough to see it. The view behind it in the background helped remind me daily I was living downtown in a metropolitan city, a city about the same size as Vancouver, in fact.
 |
| Spoonbridge and Cherry |
And of course for those of us of a certain age, the Mary Tyler Moore Show's lead character by the same name is now another Minneapolis icon. Her image is so important a statue of her throwing her tam in the air was erected on 7th Street and Nicollet, a mere few blocks away from my Minnesota home.
 |
| Unfortunately, the beret in Mary's hand was cut off on this photo. |
There were plays and concerts, good food and friends this summer. I feel as if I made a small dent in the lack of being with my sons and their wives for previous years. Just to be clear, the condo, its location, the fun of attempting to be a handi-woman for it, the decor planning and follow through, the time with family and friends here in town and out of town, all contribute to my joy. No, after retirement I didn't take a cruise or go to the special place still on my bucket list. I spent time with my sons and their wives and it was so very much more fun than any other option and better than I had hoped it would be. I leave with nothing but happiness in my heart, ready to be with the rest of my family, Paul and Mike and my Canadian friends. Summer 2014, it was a very, very good one.
So for the next few days as I make my way West, there will be no posts. Not to worry, I'm fine. It is just that there are hours per day driving and not knitting.
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