(written on my birthday, March 24th)

You might not think that someone who has lived on this planet more than a few decades (cough, cough) would consider thanking their parents for bringing them into this world; but, then there’s me! 😀

Thank you Peggy and Howdy!

Sometimes it seems like I file away memories in a completely different way than most people. For instance, I can vividly remember when I was five years old riding in the station wagon with my mom and dad and brother in the early evening through the streets of Fukuoka, Japan. I think we may have been returning from a day trip to the mountains where we had watched some potters making pottery with the running water flowing through long bamboo stalks that had been cut in half. My little brain had a day full of information, sites and sounds which may explain why I would have come up with the following question for my parents which was, “Mom/Dad, where did we (my brother and I) come from before we were here?” because I knew that I knew that I was “here” and that I hadn’t been “here” long but where was I before I was born?

Hmmm. Now this is where I know to be thankful for having come through parents like I have because I seemed to have been the kind of kid, adolescent, teenager and adult who was constantly asking these types of questions. Turns out, I began quite young.

I remember my mom and dad grinning at each other and then my mom saying, “well beans (yes, that’s my nickname), you and Howdy (yep, that’s my brother’s name too) came from heaven/God and you looked down here and decided that you wanted to come to Earth to be our kids and you chose us to be your parents so before you were here, you were with God.

That appeased me for awhile but it’s always been a burning question for me to know where I was before I was born and where I’ll go after I die. I’ve had many, many excellent teachers and friends who have helped me to delve into this question but I have to tell you that I am really grateful that I came through the Dad that I have and the Mom that I have and that I am who I am so that I can be as fully weird and wonderful as I am…most of the time…..

I’m grateful to my Dad too for many reasons least of which is his sense of humor but also for his gentle heart when he allows it to be gentle! One of my favorite memories of my father was a bitter sweet memory just before my parents divorced. We all went to our favorite picnic spot on Canyon Lake (this was right during the Viet Nam war and my Dad was about to leave on his first tour). Anyway, I don’t remember how he and I got on the subject but evidently I had a fascination with wanting to learn how to braid. So my Dad set out showing me how to braid with big ole long clumps of grass around the campsite. By the time the evening was over, we had braided at least a dozen or more clumps of grass. I love that memory. It is so simple, but it tells you a lot about my Dad.

So on my birthday today, I want to send a shout out to Peggy and Howdy for being my parents. I love you much and thank you.