When I was growing up, the last day of each month and the subsequent first day were always a big deal in our family. Each of us would lie in wait for the other one, trying to be the first to land the dreaded first “pinch and a punch for the last/first of the month.” […]
Happy Father’s Day
Even though my dad has been gone for 13+ years now, I still miss him and think about him EVERY DAY, especially on Father’s Day! Here he is enjoying some delicious food at the Roast Meat Shop ( a Korean BBQ) in Changchun, 1994.
The Recluse Cousin: A Hero
I always knew him simply as Cousin Del, even though he was actually my mom’s cousin, not mine. He never married and took care of his mother until her death. After my family moved to Minnesota (in the 1970’s) he would turn up at various family functions. He was a pleasant (but quiet) man, with a […]
A Musical Send-off
In the baggage claim area of the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport (MSP) there sits an (out of tune) piano, literally begging someone to sit down and play it. When my mom and sister took me to the airport on Monday for my flight to China, my mom announced that she wanted to sit down and play […]
One More Photo
After the post on Tuesday remembering my dad, a friend who used to work with my parents in Pakistan sent me another fun photo. It is of my mom and dad (and my older sister), and Hu and Bettie (and their eldest son) on board a ship bound for Pakistan in 1956. Aren’t they two […]
A Tribute to My Father – 2014
Thirteen years ago today, my father died. Below are the words that I spoke in farewell and tribute to my dad at his memorial service on January 25, 2001, in Roseville, Minnesota. Standing before a crowd of 600 people to deliver these remarks was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. The first part […]
