Season's Greetings

December 2007

This has been a year of joy and sorrow and transition for us. This was our first full year of living on a hill in Longview, WA, where the frogs, deer, elk, humming birds and sparrows play. (Did I forget to mention the yellow jackets, moles and garter snakes?) It was also our first year of both being retired and having lots of time to be together, work on our house projects, go to the beach, ride motorcycles, etc. But mostly it was a year when family was the main thing.

Terri's retirement in January gave us an unprecedented feeling of freedom. At first it seemed like we could do anything we wanted, as we had an infinite amount of time on our hands. But the time filled quickly and, at least for Terri, the lack of structure was almost crazy-making. But still, we had lots more time to spend with our kids and grandkids, time to travel, time to spend with Terri's folks and our respective extended families.

The year began with very special time with grandkids. The girls, Miranda, Sophia, and Olivia, spent several days of their Christmas vacation with us at our new location in Longview. They typically made it an adventure for us, with campfires in the backyard, jigsaw puzzles, and cooking and baking. We were never bored. Also, in March, Terri spent a week in Corvallis with the girls while their folks, Barbara and Bruce, went off to Europe together. She was quickly indoctrinated as to the Corvallis routine, and the adjustment was much easier than she expected. The morning walk to the school bus stop only happened a couple of times, though, and then became a morning drive to the bus stop. But the girls packed their own lunches and got themselves ready on time as part of the deal.

Our little grandson, Paul Badih Rask, also made it a very special year. He rang in the new year a little early by being born significantly ahead of his due date. It was a pretty dramatic beginning, but he has weathered it well, and his charming personality brings joy and amazement to all who come under his spell. Now over a year old, he seems to make every bite of food a scientific discovery, and delights with giggles when reading about bees that go buzzzzzz.

Our son Peter and his bride Allison warmed our hearts this year by choosing the Oregon coast as the site for their wedding/elopement in August so that Peter's sisters and parents could be a part of it. His sisters hosted a party for him at the Kennedy School the night before, so that his grandparents and other friends and family could help him celebrate. Both the party and wedding were great fun, and it was a beautiful day at Cannon Beach!!

In April, Debbie's birthday (40) was a cause for celebration as Lara and their Seattle cousins hosted a huge work-party to help Debbie jump-start renewed effort on her Wallingford house re-model. It's a house that's been in the family now for 34 years, and holds many memories. It is exciting to see it going through such a “make-over.”

Lara and Kimmo's house on Bitter Lake, also in Seattle, has become quite the entertainment center for Bull family events. In addition to hosting family BBQ's and parties, they have offered temporary living quarters to friends and family going through various transitions.

This summer, they enjoyed a visit by Kimmo's mother Eeva and brother Kari who still live in Finland--yet another occasion for a family gathering. This was Eeva's first trip to the US, and she seemed to be enjoying it very much.

Near the end of the year, we again had special time with our grandchildren. In October, we joined Barbara and her family in Cambridge, England, where they were spending an academic term on sabbatical. By the time we were there, the girls had about had their fill of castles and museums. But they managed to indulge us with a few more, and Barbara was a gracious tour guide when the girls were in school. The girls were great at entertaining us with their games, songs, swimming and playing soccer—stuff they can do anywhere.

In November, we joined Paul and his parents and aunt Debbie for some time in the sun in Puerto Vallarta. It was our first time there, and we soaked it up. The beach and ocean were spectacular, and the resort where we were hosted by Pat and Julia was all anybody could wish for. Paul loved the water and sand, and kept us all entertained full time.

Though the year was filled with many special times, we often marvel at how lucky we are just to know each of our kids is engaging life fully, facing its challenges with increasing wisdom and confidence. We so appreciate their commitment to our family and respective extended families (sometimes in spite of our seeming on-going ineptness at “family planning”). We especially appreciate Pat, Bruce, Kimmo, and now Allison, our kids-in-law, who are so supportive of our family endeavors. They even seem to enjoy it. Our several family events and gatherings were mostly planned and organized by our daughters. They just roll up their sleeves and make it happen.

Between family events, we both still manage to keep ourselves busy at our chosen “occupations” in retirement. Terri still participates in community and workplace mediation programs; and Mike is diligently upgrading our houses in Longview and Westport. It's been a good year for bathrooms. He has also uploaded over 18,000 photos to Flickr.com, where we are slowly organizing and archiving the images of our respective family histories and of our life together.

The year's news was not all good, however, as in March Mike got a call from his brother Joe to inform us that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer. This hit us like a ton of bricks. It also shifted our priorities toward helping Joe and spending as much time with him and his family as possible. We made several trips to California, and were able to accompany Joe on a few outings—drives to the mountains reminiscing about earlier adventures and just going into Old Town Clovis for Friday evening farmers' market/street fairs. Joe's illness was very difficult for him and his family and brothers, but it did bring people together for a time of love and mutual support and an awareness of how much Joe meant to all of us. After considerable suffering, he passed away in July. The family gathered again in California in early September for a memorial service for Joe and to bury him according to his wishes, next to his wife Yoshiko under a beautiful flowering tree in a cemetery on the outskirts of Fresno.

We recently came across an e-mail message Joe sent us before his diagnosis. He was planning a trip north to Washington, and especially looking forward to an extended motorcycle ride with his brothers. It was nice to remember his spirit before the rapid decline and suffering. Mike will always remember this year as the one when we had the honor of being with him through his ultimate ordeal. We are grateful that when he first called Mike about his diagnosis he said “I had a good life.” Even though we feel he was cheated out of many years to enjoy his family, it is good to think that he had some contentment.

And so it is with renewed awareness of the importance of our relationships, especially family bonds, that we look forward to another year of special times, sharing in life's joys and facing its challenges together.