All posts tagged: Family

This is where DJB brags about his family, so be warned!

Observations from the road: (The family, friends, community edition)

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This is a tale of family gathering to grieve in the best way possible – by telling stories.  It is a tale of being part of a community. It includes guitars.  (Always guitars.) And it includes a haircut in a mini-United Nations. Hang with me.  I’ll try to be brief. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, I received a call early in the morning from my sister Debbie.  She called to tell me that our brother-in-law Raouf – husband of my younger sister Carol – had passed away suddenly as a result of a heart attack.  Their two boys had come home from college the day before and the family had shared a meal together on Tuesday night.   By mid-day Wednesday, their lives had changed forever. My older brother Steve and I spoke.  We were not able to get to the funeral, but quickly agreed to find a mutual time to travel to Tennessee to see Carol and the rest of the family. Our father – he of the recent 90th birthday – had just moved into …

Tom Brown transition

Setting the record straight (Or when “True but not always factual” won’t do)

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A few weeks ago I wrote a post about a visit I’d had with my dad.  When it comes to writing about family, I tend to follow the dictum that I first used in It’s a Wonderful Life (For Tom Brown on His 90th Birthday) back in July. In that post, I listed 90 things about the wonderful life of my father and included the caveat that these were “all true, even if they are not all factual.” Well, I guess that wasn’t good enough for my father!  As an engineer, he likes things precise. So earlier this week I received an email from my dad entitled, “More to Come, editing.” I had recounted a story I’ve heard many times before. My parents were part of the post-war (WWII) marriage boom that begat the well-documented baby boom.  Both were from the small town of Franklin, located about 20 miles from Nashville.  My father had just graduated from Vanderbilt and he and my mom were married in the First Baptist Church in Franklin.  Before beginning his …

Train Travel, 78 RPMs, Chiggers, and Other Memories of Cleaning Out a House

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I took a day off from work today to be with family in Tennessee.  My father – who earlier this year celebrated his 90 birthday – is transitioning from living in his home of the past 26 years to living in an independent living facility. (The home he is leaving is not to be confused with “The Old Home Place” aka 407 E. Main Street, where I spent my formative years from junior high through college.) My two sisters and a brother who live nearby have handled most of the details of the move, and Daddy now spends much of his time with my sister Debbie and her husband Mark as he waits for his new apartment to become available. However, before I was able to focus on family I had work to do along Music Row in Nashville, and I found myself at one of our Historic Hotels of America, the Union Station Hotel on Broadway. I’ve told the story before, but it is so good it bears repeating again. My parents were part …

Mr. Emerson has thought about everything

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(Editor’s Note: Teachers are such an important part of our lives.  Our twins were blessed to have many wonderful teachers, and a few real mentors from that group. Last evening, Candice and I went to a celebration of the teaching career of Tim Emerson, the retired head of the Upper School at Maret, and one of the teachers who changed our Claire’s life.  During the evening we heard tributes to Tim — loving, personal, and funny — that indicated he had changed many lives for the better over his 36 years at Maret.  As one former student said to Tim while surrounded by about 400 friends and family, “Just look at the people here tonight.  This is your report card.” The lesson that we should never underestimate the impact one person can have on the world fits as well with Tim as it did in my last post written for one of Andrew’s teachers.  The following is our thank you to Tim on the occasion of his retirement, and we wanted to share it with …

Sunflowers by van Gogh

Connecting…across a distance

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After a very busy week of conference activities in Cambridge – going from early morning until late in the evening – Candice and I came to London for two days to rest and reconnect with each other and with our souls. Knowing that we were likely to need a break from seven days of nonstop travel, meetings, tours, discussions, and connections, we chose to see where the spirit would lead.  Little did we know that although we were quite a distance from home, we would connect to friends old and new in ways wonderful and unexpected. The train from Cambridge deposited us at King’s Cross Station on platform 9, and that was the first reconnection.  My mind immediately went to those summers of reading Harry Potter books to Andrew and Claire at the river house.  And I thought…hmmm, I bet Platform 9 3/4 is around here somewhere. Sure enough, there was a queue of twenty-somethings waiting to take their picture at Harry’s famous point of departure for Hogwarts.  We laughed, and reminded ourselves that our …

MXDC

The tastes of vacation at MXDC Cocina Mexicana

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Our “DC Restaurant Week” vacation began in earnest on Monday evening, as we took the Metro downtown to sample  upscale Mexican food at MXDC. A short two-block walk from Metro Center, this three-level Todd English restaurant was new to all three of us, making for a promising beginning to our week. All three agreed that Andrew’s Black Sea bass with Brussels sprouts was the top choice of the three entrees.  I had a very good Mole de Costilla (short ribs) while Candice went with the steak option.  I also had an Azul Guacamole with blue cheese, bacon, chipotle, and red onion that was wonderfully spicy. We have six more of these lined up over the next week, so I have to pace myself in both writing and eating.  We all gave MXDC between 3-to-3 1/2 stars.  A good start! More to come… DJB Image: Andrew gets ready to kick off Restaurant Week by digging into the Sea bass at MXDC

Tom Brown transition

It’s a Wonderful Life (For Tom Brown on his 90th birthday)

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My father is celebrating his 90th birthday on Sunday, July 5th, and the night before fireworks will be set off in his honor all across America! Daddy told me recently he didn’t think he would live past 73. So while he may not be a very good prognosticator, he still has much to recommend him. That got me to thinking, and in the spirit of my 60 Lessons from 60 Years, I’ve pulled together 90 things about the wonderful life of Tom Brown on the occasion of his 90th birthday.  Just like George Bailey in the movie of the same name, life for so many people would be much the poorer if Tom Brown had not lived these 90 years (and counting!). These are all true, even if they aren’t all factual.  If you have others you would like to add, please list them in the comments section below.  (And thanks to Candice, Claire, and Andrew for their contributions to this list.  Besides being a pretty terrific dad, he’s an amazing grandfather and father-in-law.) 1.  …