Dear friends,
As you know, this past year ended in a sad and challenging manner. The death of my parents was just about as conclusive an acknowledgment of my mortality as I can think of. I'm not longer invincible or immortal. And yeah, it's hard to know you will never see or speak with them again, even when you're a budding senior citizen yourself.
I had to take a break from writing this blog, which I so love committing to, for a lot of reasons. I just didn't feel...wry or whimsical. I sort of just felt sad.
But the new year is a coming, and my husband (whose own year has been challenging, as you'll note below) kicked me in the butt with this letter. It's time to get on with it...and so, for no particular reason other than it's different, we thought our 2014 Farewell would end with a few very (in)Frequently Asked Questions. Here goes...
Q: What did we do this year that was so
extraordinary that we needed to burden you with reading about it?
A: Not much, really, come to think of it.
Like you, we’ve traveled. Like your kids, our daughter reached personal
milestones of which we are proud. She’s a dedicated student at the Lab School
of Washington. She’s old enough now to think of her pestering, snooping parents
as her personal “Lab Rats” and enjoys experimenting with us, but we don’t mind
because we love mazes.
Q: Did our daughter run out of Grandparents
this year?
A: Very sadly, yes. My beloved mother and
father passed away within 47 days of each other this fall. We continue to
grieve and expect our grieving to go on for some time. But we also are
comforted knowing that they lived their lives in full and found peace, and we
deeply appreciate all the kindness that was shown us.
Q: What’s up for 2015?
A: Our
daughter will transition from 8th Grade to High School, take
a stab at commercial modeling; attend summer camps; and enjoy beach holidays.
I will be one year closer to
blessed retirement, and will return to successfully managing just one household
at a time.
My husband will continue to explore
living with a mild movement disorder with the help his doctor and the NIH.
Although only God and the stock market know when he will retire, he has
reluctantly given up on the idea of taking up calligraphy in retirement. On the
bright side, he is actively exploring cocktail shaking.
Q: What’s up with you?
A: We don’t know, but we hope it is joyous,
satisfying, and life-affirming, and we hope we are included in some small way.
Q: What have you learned from reading this
letter?
A: You have more patience than is probably
good for you.
With love and gratitude for your friendship near or virtual, Mr. and Mrs. Sedd send you all good wishes for a Happy New Year!
