Departures

Beth stayed with us a couple nights because of car trouble.  We watched a great movie called Departures.  Strongly recommended!  Explores a topic we rarely think about but that is extremely important.

Protagonist loses job as a cellist in a symphony orchestra.  The only job he can find is as an undertaker.

This is a beuatiful, thought-provoking Japanese film about a young man who bravely does what he must do, and grows a lot in the process.  There are some awkward, unpleasant moments in the beginning, where you wonder if he will give up. He has so much to lose.  There is also some inevitable dark humor.  But by the end of the movie, many parts of the hero's life have come together and re-connected through his new profession. 


As with so many other Japanese disciplines, such as  ikebana, chanoyu, etc.,  this one is austerely beautiful.  It serves to bring dignity and beautiful memories to grieving families.


There is a learning curve for the young man.  But his mastering of this new discipline has much in common with his cello playing, which he has had to stop doing professionally but not in his personal life.  In fact he has returned to his roots by giving up his professional cello and re-connecting with his first cello.


This is a wonderful movie about  going home.


Everyone should see it.

Wear Purple On Friday January 28

Northwestern University was officially established on January 28, 1851 when its Act of Incorporation was passed by the Illinois Legislature.


NU alumni around the world used to light candles on Founders' Day to honor the anniversary of Northwestern's founding. This Friday, January 28, Founders' Day 2011, remember to wear purple clothing and light a candle in recognition of our 160th anniversary.

Learn more about the history of Northwestern University here and remember to wear purple this Friday!

Philip: Fall Quarter at Medill

Philip worked very hard last quarter, and he did a great job academically.  We are so proud of you, Philip! congratulations.

Quo Vadis

Philip's friend Roey gave him a copy of Quo Vadis by Sienkewicz and urged him to read it.

I decided to read it myself.

What a powerful and moving book.  Quo Vadis is a masterpiece.  It was published in 1896 and Sienkiewicz was awarded a Nobel prize for literature in 1905.


The novel parallels the experiences of Petronius and Peter, whose names are similar but otherwise are very different in their origins and station.  Peter was a Jewish fisherman and follower of  Jesus,  Petronius was a noble Roman who arbitrated the artistic sensibilities of the Roman people.  


These two found themselves in Rome at the same time, when Nero was at the height of his madness and looking for a scapegoat to blame for the burning of Rome.  The link between them is Marcus Vinicius, nephew of Petronius and spiritual student of Peter.  Petronius and Vinicius work for Nero, who is totally insane.  Rome is dying as an empire, but about to be born as a spiritual center for Christianity.  In a sense, Rome itself is a magnificent and complex character in this novel.


I loved this book.  I wish everyone would read it.  

The character of Petronius is amazingly articulate.  I found myself re-reading certain passages that were extremely well-written, full of wit and subtly sarcastic commentary.  


Petronius and Peter accept their deaths around the same time.  They both choose the circumstances of their deaths, and it is one of the few things they have control over in these days of madness.  But you have to read the book to learn the important details!


The 2 best passages in the book take place right before their deaths.  Petronius is surrounded by his loved ones, and reads aloud a letter to Nero in which he expresses what he really thinks of him.  Peter meanwhile is escaping from the persecutions in Rome, and along the road encounters  the spirit of Jesus, whom he loves so much and has missed so terribly.  He says in amazement "Quo vadis, Domine?" (where are you going, Lord?) and Jesus replies he is going to Rome...and if Peter does not go with him, Jesus will have to die again.


This is a beautiful and compelling work.  I believe a lot of the feeling comes from Sienkiewicz having experienced the agony of the partitions of Poland.  He was familiar with selfish and insane rulers whose god was their own self, and who lived only for their own ego, and to exploit the people who are so devoted to their land and their nation.   Sienkiewicz understood about the spiritual despair that comes from the threat to a beloved nation which may survive as s spiritual power when it can no longer survive as a temporal power.

Full Moon: January 19, 2011

a clear sky for the first evening in a long time....got to see a beautiful moonrise! and spend quality time with Halen, Gail, and Debbie.

Happy Birthday, Alexander!

Happy

Birthday

Alex!

January 17, 1985 was the happiest day of my life.  I made up my mind in 8th grade that if I ever had a baby boy, he would be named Alexander (after Alexander the Great).  As it happened, every second boy born that year seemed to be named Alexander...so in an effort to distinguish our Alexander from all the others, we decided to call him "Alek" for short (because the was "Alexander" is spelled in Poland is ALEKSANDR.

In any event, we were in a state of bliss with our baby boy.  He was born a little before 8 pm (we think it was 7:47 - 7:49, depending on if youj believe the hospital clock or our own watches.)  Alex has his Caprcorn in his fifth house,  his moon in Sagittarius, and Virgo rising,

Next day January 18 was the coldest day of the year...it was more than 20 degrees below zero, blindingly bright and clear with the white snow and ice  that covered everything.  He was born at Evanston Hospital, and Ray had a hard time starting his car to come and see us.

On some years Alex gets an earthquake for his birthday.  Wonder what will happen today?

Hope it is the beginning of a perfect year for him

Packing Up the Christmas Decorations

Today is a good day to take down the Christmas / Yule decorations, and un-decorate the Tree.

In the process I am coming across ornaments and other things that have stories connected with them.

This one, for instance...that Philip made.  There is no date on it. Maybe first grade?  He had a wonderful first-grade teacher who did many fun and creative things with the class.

Here is another hand-made ornament that looked very cool, was probably fun to make, and very pretty (I think!)  It was made from holiday potpourri that included red and green wood shavings (which might have been scented at one time) with some sparkly stuff, ribbon bits, etc.  Did this come from  Miss Jan at North Park Nursery School?  or from grade school (Newberry)?  or maybe it even came from the Rosary College (aka Dominican University) alumni Christmas party, which the kids loved to attend.  There was usually an activity of this sort.  Rosary offered a very good early childhood program, and their activities for small kids were great.  This may have come from one of those holiday parties.  alas I wish I could remember.  Even worse, I do not remember which child made it.  Does anyone want to step forward to help me out here?

This next one was made by a professional artist, Peggy Larson, whose son Ryan attended North Park Church Nursery School with Alek.  I can't recall under what conditions Peggy gave this to me....She sold her artwork in many places.  Her house turned into a delightful country Christmas boutique every winter.  Or perhaps she brought them to school as gifts...or maybe it was even at Ryan's birthday party (searching my memory to see if it took place right before Christmas, and did she offer them to guests as favors?)  my memory is the worst...

Chicago Botanic Gardens in Autumn

Olivia and I visited the Chicago Botanic Gardens in October, before she went home to Ireland.  Everythning was so beautiful!

more cool photos here.

Hallloween 2010

Philip carves amazing jack-o-lanterns.  They are beautiful when we set them in the darkness of the back yard with jar candles inside.

Visit From Dan and Jeff

Two of Maris's dearest friends stopped by to visit on Sunday January 9.  Dan was home on leave.  He had not been able to attend Maris's birthday party in November.   We are so grateful for these special people, who treasure Maris's memory along with us.

November 16, 2010

We have been attending L.O.S.S. support group meeting s on LaSalle St. the 3rd Tuesday of every month.  It turned out that Maris's birthday fell on this particular Tuesday.  I was grateful we had an opportunity to be with people who would understand on this special day.  We brought a birthday cake to the meeting, and asked the people to gather round the cake.  We gave each person a candle,. and asked them to make a wish and light the candle for Maris and add it to the cake.

Maris Birthday 2010

Some of Maris's best friends came over on the weekend before his birthday.  We lit candles on Maris's birthday cake, and sang "Happy Birthday" to him.

We talked about what the last year had brought to us.

A lot of really fun craziness had always taken place at Maris's birthday parties.  So after a while we went in the back yard and lit some firecrackers in his honor.

We talked for a while longer.  It was a sSunday night.  But I was grateful beyonnd words that this gathering had taken place.  Special thanks to Peter Carparrelli for organizing it.

You guys are all very precious to me.  You were special to Maris, and so you are special to me too,

Thank you for being part of Maris's life.

See you all again next year! 

Halloween 2010

While Alex was here, we visited the Original Pancake House in Park Ridge:

we love their holiday decorations, especially the Halloween Tree:

October 26, 2010

Alek was here on leave in October.  He was here on Maris's anniversary, for which I was so grateful.  We stayed up past midnight drinking absinthe.

Gail came over with some fruit (which went well with absinthe) and flowers.

Olivia was still here on October 26, too.  Her presence was very healing.  A few days earlier, Gayle Mack was here from Georgia, and had done some healings for Ray and me.

We will miss Maris forever...and love him forever, too.

Autumn 2010 cont;d

well, here is what was left of our Autumn decorations by the time I realized that a blog was the solution to our communication problems with the outside world:

Philip did a beautiful job of decorating our house, as always.  We did enjoy it very much, it was the most beautiful it had ever been for autumn.  He may not be here to decorate it for Autumn 2011, however, because he will likely be doing an internship in New York during fall quarter of 2011.  If we had been thinking faster, we would have invited everyone we knew to our house for Thanksgiving dinner in 2010.

Jury Duty

I received a notice that I have jury duty at criminal court on February 2.

When I came downstairs this morning and turned on the radio, what could be more appropriate than a This I Believe essay about the importance of jury duty.

It raised the vibe level of my day.

Thank you, Spirit!

IANDS

On January 8, I attended a monthly meeting of the International Association for Near-Death Studies, Inc. (IANDS)


The Chicago IANDS group meets at the Evanston Hospital.

Dr Jeff Long was the speaker.  He is the author of Evidence of the Afterlife, and .founder of the Near-Death Experience Research Foundation. 

I am looking forward to future meetings of this group.  I think I need to learn about these things, and i am grateful for Gail to pushing me (for years) to attend.

The group's facilitator, Diane Willis, started the session by inviting people to meditate briefly while she played a  Native American flute.   I had an interesting meditation.  I prayed that I might learn what I need to learn, and receive what healing i need.  I thought about my heart chakra, and about how it seems to be locked in some way.  I prayed that it might become un-locked and healed.  Then I began to think about locks...as in air-locks, or ship locks.  I realized locks can be good.  They can keep you safe from more than you can handle of what you want.  I saw how a metaphysical mechanism like a ship lock can protect my heart chakra by allowing in a little energy at a time to bring it up to the next level.  Little by little, in a safe way, I can receive that for which I pray.

This was a powerful visualizatiion, which helped me understand certain things.  Thank you, Spirit!


Afterwards we had a great dinner at Tommy Nevins Pub in Evanston.


Thank you, Gail!

Church of the Spirit

Church of the Spirit, Chicago

When Olivia was here in October, she asked if there was an old, established Spiritualist church in Chicago.  She urged us to go there.

We finally visited Church of the Spirit this past Wednesday, January 5, 2011.

Interesting!

It was an all-message service, preceded by a hymn we had never heard before, and for which were unable to sing; and a short inspirational greeting / blessing.

Each person received an individual message from Spirit.

Ray was told about a new car, a driving trip, and an ancestor or sommeone who had a pickup truck and who might be a carpenter.  This person was looking out for Ray.  Hmmm...Ray wishes he did have a carpenter looking out for hi; maybe a distant ancestor? 

Gail was told she had been worrying too mucvh about other people and should have more fun this year.

Deena was told about an ancestor who was a seamstress looking out for me.  I have several ancestors who weere seamstresses, including Cousin Estelle (who had owned a garment company) and Cousin Laura on Mom's side; and Great Aunt Teklla  who lived in California, on Dad's side.  I need to think about the pattern of my life, which needs just a slight adjustment.

Are these  intriguing messages to be taken as metaphor?

I will look for some pictures of my seamstresses.

December 4, 2010

It was a really snowy day.  Here is what it looked like in Chicago, for those of you living in warmer places such as North Carolina!

More Sculpture By Philip.

As mentioned before, he really enjoyed his sculpture class.  It gave a workout to the other side of his brain, which was being overworked by the discipline and linear thinking involved in the journalism classes.

Why Are These Posts Out of Chronological Order?

Because I have not had time, since at least June, to upload my pictures from my memory stick.  Guess I just am trying to do too much.  At  least now I am getting some of our posts up there...click on the labels (right side) to see stuff about a particular person or topic.

Aunt Ev birthday 2010

December 28 at Gusto Italiano Ristorante in Glenview. Aunt Doree, Aunt Eveline (the birthday girl), Philip, and Ray.

Philip birthday 2010

August 10, 2010...we took Philip to Ras Dashen  Ethiopian restaurant, then home for lovely birthday cake from Bittersweet pastry shop.  Everything was delicious.

Christmas Eve 2010, cont'd...

we had a pleasant Christmas Eve, many Polish delicacies, including homemade pierogi in potato, sauerkraut, and cheese.  The aunts visited with us, along with our friend Gail.  No pictures! because I was so over-extended, there was no room left on my memory stick.  so....here is a post-Christmas tree....and the Manger as it looked on Christmas Day:

  Midnight Mass at St. John Cantius was beautiful (Mozart Mass in C, The Coronation Mass.)  Then home to make the traditional christmas morning breakfast casserole, to be consumed with champagne mimosas and fruit compote.  Yum! went to bed at 4:30 a.m. and overslept until 11:04 a.m....eeek!   rush rush rush to stirfry sweet sour red cabbage to take to Diane and Al's house for christmas dinner.  We finally opened our presents late on December 26!

New Year 2011

Aunt Ev stayed overnight with us.  We cooked our favorite things for dinner: filet mignon, fettuccine alfredo, shrimp de jonge, japanese spinach, persian carrots, glogg, champagne.  We watched Marx Brothers and Twilight Zone marathons on TV.  We worked on the Night Before Christmas 1000 piece puzzle, and stayed up until 2:30 a.m..  Next day we went to Macy's Walnut Room for brunch.  It was a nice time.

Maris

This is our second Christmas without Maris.  The world will never be the same again...but we are getting used to it...sort of...little by very, very little.

Last year at this time we were not doing so well.  Life revolved around Deena's Remembering Maris Blog, plus the epidemic conjunctivitis she came down with on December 26 2009.  It almost cost her what little was leftof her eyesight, which has returned about 75%.  But the time was valuable for all sorts of healing, and figuring out why she was having so much trouble seeing.

Philip's Sculpture

Philip had a great time with his sculpture class in Fall 3010.  This one made use of plaster molds of his various body parts.  I think it made an interesting depilatory. :-)    He ran out of time for the head, just as well since he did not want to lose his eyebrows and hair in the process.