For the last three days, the haunting melody of the Beatles’ “She’s Leaving Home” has tormented my brain. Now that I read through the lyrics, though, I realize very little applies. Our youngest isn’t running away. James is heading into his new life. Adult life. About an hour ago, Gary and I waved from our front porch (a lovely tradition from Mom’s aunt and uncle May and Pip) as James pulled out of the driveway with the last load of…
May 28 is a special day for our family. It’s Dad‘s birthday. He would have been 92 this year. And oh, how he would have loved to have been in Terre Haute, Indiana, on that day. … because May 28 this year was also the day James graduated from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, with a double major (Electrical Engineering and Math) plus a Master’s degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. But for Dad it would have been even more than…
“Ouchie post!” I can’t begin to tell you how many times that little voice popped up from the back seat of our car. But I knew what he meant. Our youngest had spied a new and unusual ouchie post and was wildly gesticulating, hoping I’d be just as excited to see it. It was only recently, though, as we reminisced, that I learned more about the obsession. Farmer Gary remembers that James wasn’t much more than a toddler at the…
The phone rang. I answered even before the first ring was complete. Mrs. Werne? You have a very sick little boy. Pack a bag right now and take him to Riley Hospital. Don’t stop for anything. The date was Saturday, July 25, 2003. The little boy was James. He was only three years old. Friday evening, James wasn’t quite right. He threw up (doubly gross because Gary had brought him a blueberry slushy to drink). As I washed James off…
It comes as no surprise that James was bound and determined to catch this year’s Louder Than Life Festival in Louisville. In spite of 2018’s exciting last-minute change of headliner to Alice in Chains, last year’s fest was nothing but a stick in the mud. Literally. Completely opposite of this fall, last September brought nearly non-stop rain. The festival was canceled, with the realization that slogging about in ankle-deep mud would destroy the beautiful outdoor venue. Poor James; his hopes…
Did you know Farmer Gary went to Rose-Hulman, too? Here’s the story: During his junior year of high school (circa 1972), Gary decided to participate in College Day. That’s the annual opportunity to meet with representatives from various colleges and universities. The appointment schedules for these one-on-one meetings were taped up in the hallway. As Gary made his way from list to list, he noticed one school’s sign-up sheet was blank. So he signed up. His interview with Rose-Hulman was…
Christmas is a big deal around our house. When the boys were little, we went a bit nuts with what went under the tree. To counteract that gimme-gimme message, we always made a point of anonymously donating wrapped gifts to children in need. It was a fun family activity to pick out gifts for these boys and girls and wrap them in festive paper. When James was in Beta Club in high school, he came home one day with a…
“Mom! Come see this beautiful sunset!” With bedroom windows peering in a southwest direction, James always seemed to catch a beautiful sunset before the rest of us. He’d head outside to watch the changing colors and often grabbed a few photos at just the right moment. Other times, he slung a guitar over his shoulder and sang to the birds, deer, and the occasional groundhog as dusk settled. Mom never tires of hearing her red-haired grandson has a poet’s soul….
When I showed this photo to grandson Cameron, 6, his reaction was immediate: “Goose! Goose! Is that Frosty the Snowman?” My grandson calls me Goose. I hope he never stops. The photo is from Saturday. James (the freshman who’s technically a sophomore at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology) sent it. That’s James (Uncle James if your name is Cameron) the third builder in from the right. Wearing a toasty-warm blue jacket. But no hat and no gloves. As a side note,…