Life’s Both Sweet and Sour

Yesterday was Ted’s birthday, which was a milestone year, as he turned 50!  We had a lovely party, with family and friends, laughter and perfect weather.  Perfect weather was important, as we had not the room inside, and most of us ate at tables in the back yard.  He received a LOT of bourbon, his favorite spirit, and we ate drank and were merry.  It was a great day.

It was especially nice for me, because my brother Richard was here.  I haven’t seen Richard since our mom’s memorial in 2008, and it’s been far too long.  He lives in Juneau, Alaska, which is an expensive flight and hotel combo, so we haven’t been able to make it up there.  I do hope we can make it sometime, as Ted has not yet been to Alaska, and Juneau is fairly stunning in the beauty department, with lots of lovely hikes and amazing views, and the best fish I’ve ever had.

The reason he was in California was very sad, however.  My mom’s younger brother, my uncle Forrest, passed away on April 21st.  He had been sick enough to worry his daughters for a couple of months at least, but only sick enough to really scare us for a couple of weeks, and to be honest, we’re still not entirely sure what went so wrong as to kill him.  He was only 67.  He left behind a wife and his two daughters, all of whom are broken hearted, as well as three grandchildren, and his dogs, who are missing him and wondering when he will come home.   We are most worried about my Grandmother, though, who has been in poor health herself for the last several months, and has now outlived 2 husbands and all 4 of her children.   We’re worried this last loss will be the undoing of her.  She is holding up the very best she can, and says that at least she had her children with her as long as she did, and she is thankful for the time she had with them.   She’s the strongest person I know, in her 92 lb body and broken heart. I do hope she can recover from this.   His memorial was Saturday evening, and was a lovely chance to celebrate his life with family, friends, and his coworkers, all who loved and respected him greatly.

So this has been an emotional time, full of joy and sorrow, laughter and tears.  I’m glad Richard was able to stay long enough to celebrate Ted’s birthday with us.  I’m glad we had a chance to come together as family and friends to celebrate Ted’s first 50 years.