14 December 1988
Merry Christmas! It is with hesitant anticipation that I approach Advent and Christmas. I enjoy the extra baking, the shopping, the card-mailing and receiving, the get-togethers and parties; the concerts, Madrigal dinner, the decorations and lights; but is that what God intended? Can all that be combined with the Worship and Adoration of the Christ-Child? Perhaps so, as long as we remember Jesus is the Reason for the Season!
January - a couple of trips to Mpls-St. Paul - Vince was considering a change of location but decided against it so we are still here in Iowa.
February - I flew to Charleston, S.C. to entertain Heather and help her welcome her new brother. Andrew Keith was born February 14.
March - Jené, Vince and I drove to S.C. during Spring Break - Grandpa had to see that new grandson, too. We also had a trip to Montreal for a Dental Meeting.
June - 2 weeks at a lake in Mn., my sisters and families, my folks, Arik and Jené joining us for the first week. Dawn and Bob, Heather and Andy there for most of both weeks. Bob's new orders were to report to Fort Leavenworth, KS July 1. It's been fun having them so close - we've seen them at least every month.
August - spent a week at Windom with the folks - visiting relatives, etc. Looked up a high school classmate (I hadn't seen her since our 5-yr. reunion) one day on our way to visit my sister in Mankato. My cousin (Mom's 1st cousin) gave me some letters in Norwegian written by my gr. gr. grandfather to his son, my gr. grandfather. What fun to have!
Sept., Oct., Nov., - football games, concerts: we've heard Moscow Symphony, Marvin Hamlisch, Robert Goulet in South Pacific, Debbie Reynolds, Canadian Brass, Mark Williams in Oklahoma!, among others.
Our kids:
Dawn, Bob, Heather and Andy will be in Kansas until June 1, then maybe heading for Guam. We've never visited Guam.
Mark - received his DMA in Voice Performance at U of I, Champaign, Ill. presently teaching at Millikin Univ., Decatur.
Arik - still living and working in LA - hopes to get home in June.
Jené - practice teaching next semester; graduating from UNI in May, marrying John Daub in June - both of them hoping to find teaching positions.
Verla Williams
Showing posts with label Heather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heather. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
1987
December 16, 1987
Dear __________
On a Saturday about 3 weeks ago, we stood in a cold, wet rain eagerly waiting for a glimpse of the King of Norway as he drove through the streets of Decorah. The thought has struck me: do we wait as eagerly now as, we approach the celebration of the birth of the King of Kings! May your Celebration be especially meaningful to you (and to us) this joyful season.
Just a brief summary of where our kids are: well, come to think of it, it will be brief. They are all still where they were last year. Maybe by next year there will be a couple of changes. We visited Dawn and Bob and Heather in Charleston, S.C. last March, and we made a short trip to L.A. to see Arik this fall. It's fun to be able to see them in your mind instead of just imagining what their homes are like, etc. We have been to Mark and Amy's a couple of times at Champaign, and see Jené oftener - she's the closest and is enjoying her college work.
Guess August was both the saddest and the "gladdest" month. Vince's brother Lyle died from lunq cancer - he had fouqht it bravely for 2 1/2 years. Fortunately, we had been to Salt Lake in July to see Lyle and Exene, and Linda and family and had some good visits. We flew out for his memorial service August 17-18.
And then the following weekend drove to Windom to help my folks celebrate their 60th Wedding Anniversary. We made it a Blakey reunion and all of the folks' descendants were there, includinq 15 qrandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren. We spent most of Saturday together visiting and eating, and eating and visiting. On Sunday, we filled 4 pews at morning worship, and at noon nearly filled an upper room of a restaurant where Dad treated us to dinner. In the afternoon, the folks greeted 160 friends and relatives at an Open House. My only reqret is that the weekend went too fast, and the time for visiting was too short. Next time we will have to add another day. Shall we plan it for their 65th or 70th? It really was such fun!
Merry Christmas,
Dear __________
On a Saturday about 3 weeks ago, we stood in a cold, wet rain eagerly waiting for a glimpse of the King of Norway as he drove through the streets of Decorah. The thought has struck me: do we wait as eagerly now as, we approach the celebration of the birth of the King of Kings! May your Celebration be especially meaningful to you (and to us) this joyful season.
Just a brief summary of where our kids are: well, come to think of it, it will be brief. They are all still where they were last year. Maybe by next year there will be a couple of changes. We visited Dawn and Bob and Heather in Charleston, S.C. last March, and we made a short trip to L.A. to see Arik this fall. It's fun to be able to see them in your mind instead of just imagining what their homes are like, etc. We have been to Mark and Amy's a couple of times at Champaign, and see Jené oftener - she's the closest and is enjoying her college work.
Guess August was both the saddest and the "gladdest" month. Vince's brother Lyle died from lunq cancer - he had fouqht it bravely for 2 1/2 years. Fortunately, we had been to Salt Lake in July to see Lyle and Exene, and Linda and family and had some good visits. We flew out for his memorial service August 17-18.
And then the following weekend drove to Windom to help my folks celebrate their 60th Wedding Anniversary. We made it a Blakey reunion and all of the folks' descendants were there, includinq 15 qrandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren. We spent most of Saturday together visiting and eating, and eating and visiting. On Sunday, we filled 4 pews at morning worship, and at noon nearly filled an upper room of a restaurant where Dad treated us to dinner. In the afternoon, the folks greeted 160 friends and relatives at an Open House. My only reqret is that the weekend went too fast, and the time for visiting was too short. Next time we will have to add another day. Shall we plan it for their 65th or 70th? It really was such fun!
Merry Christmas,
Sunday, April 3, 2011
1986
9 December 1986
Dear __________
Last night I read about 70 Christmas letters and cards - no, I haven't received that many already this year. I was re-reading the ones we received last year. We were so involved with the details of our Norway trip at this time last year that it was good to read them again.
Norway - it is impossible to describe our trip in a 'brief' letter but I will try to give a few observations. We had a great trip! We also had frustrations! It is much different to visit a beautiful country for a couple of weeks than to live within its culture for five months - not that we would give up the experience - we wouldn't. But next time we will be prepared for the cultural shock. I think the most difficult part for me was the language barrier. You turn on the TV and you can't understand it. You pick up a newspaper and you can't read it. You answer the telephone and can't understand the caller. You go to church and can't understand the hymns, prayers, sermon or Scriptures. And on and on. Vince got along quite well. Most of the time, he understood at least the gist of the conversations. Most of the time the conversations went over my head. [Handwritten note: By the way, visit Norway in the summertime.]
But we had a great trip! The highlight was meeting "family" - third, fourth, fifth or sixth cousins. In particular, one distant cousin of Vince's outdid himself in Norwegian hospitality. We were invited to their home many times; he took us to the church where Vince's forebears were baptized, married, and buried. He showed us the farms that they lived on and in some cases where family still lives. They shared with us their Syttende Mai (May 17) celebration. They invited us to a day in their hyyte (cabin) on the Oslofjord.
Other relatives also opened their homes to us, some in Oslo or the suburbs, and some out in the scenic countryside. On one farm which used to be in the family but is now owned by strangers, we were invited in and treated to kaffe and smultringer (donuts) while they tried to help us find out if there were any relations still in the area. As I said - all these visits were indeed the highlight of our trip.
We returned to Iowa City on June 12, having left Norway on May 22. We drove through Denmark, Germany, and then over to England before flying out from London. The typical American tourists: we tried to see too much in too short a time, and hope we have another opportunity to take more time to see some of those beautiful places.
Life is back to normal, whatever that is. Jené is back at UNI and enjoying it. Arik is working in California and planning on attending USC at Northridge next semester. Mark and Amy are at Champaign - Amy has completed her Master's and Mark is still at work on his Doctorate. We go see them every once in a while. Dawn and Heather spent 3 weeks with us in September - Bob has been on the J.F.Kennedy carrier in the Mediterranean since August, but will be back in a couple of months.
A Blessed Christmas!
Dear __________
Last night I read about 70 Christmas letters and cards - no, I haven't received that many already this year. I was re-reading the ones we received last year. We were so involved with the details of our Norway trip at this time last year that it was good to read them again.
Norway - it is impossible to describe our trip in a 'brief' letter but I will try to give a few observations. We had a great trip! We also had frustrations! It is much different to visit a beautiful country for a couple of weeks than to live within its culture for five months - not that we would give up the experience - we wouldn't. But next time we will be prepared for the cultural shock. I think the most difficult part for me was the language barrier. You turn on the TV and you can't understand it. You pick up a newspaper and you can't read it. You answer the telephone and can't understand the caller. You go to church and can't understand the hymns, prayers, sermon or Scriptures. And on and on. Vince got along quite well. Most of the time, he understood at least the gist of the conversations. Most of the time the conversations went over my head. [Handwritten note: By the way, visit Norway in the summertime.]
But we had a great trip! The highlight was meeting "family" - third, fourth, fifth or sixth cousins. In particular, one distant cousin of Vince's outdid himself in Norwegian hospitality. We were invited to their home many times; he took us to the church where Vince's forebears were baptized, married, and buried. He showed us the farms that they lived on and in some cases where family still lives. They shared with us their Syttende Mai (May 17) celebration. They invited us to a day in their hyyte (cabin) on the Oslofjord.
Other relatives also opened their homes to us, some in Oslo or the suburbs, and some out in the scenic countryside. On one farm which used to be in the family but is now owned by strangers, we were invited in and treated to kaffe and smultringer (donuts) while they tried to help us find out if there were any relations still in the area. As I said - all these visits were indeed the highlight of our trip.
We returned to Iowa City on June 12, having left Norway on May 22. We drove through Denmark, Germany, and then over to England before flying out from London. The typical American tourists: we tried to see too much in too short a time, and hope we have another opportunity to take more time to see some of those beautiful places.
Life is back to normal, whatever that is. Jené is back at UNI and enjoying it. Arik is working in California and planning on attending USC at Northridge next semester. Mark and Amy are at Champaign - Amy has completed her Master's and Mark is still at work on his Doctorate. We go see them every once in a while. Dawn and Heather spent 3 weeks with us in September - Bob has been on the J.F.Kennedy carrier in the Mediterranean since August, but will be back in a couple of months.
A Blessed Christmas!
Saturday, April 2, 2011
1985
4 December 1985
As you turned your calendar to December, did you stop to wonder where the year has gone? I did. And I looked back to see. Each sheet is marked up with birthdays to remember, things to do, places to go, and even money spent. Each month has a lot of repetitions: circle meeting, Norse Club, reading group, postage - $4.40; 22nd - call Mom; go quilt. And each month has some things different: a concert, or a play, or an opera (we drove to Champaign, IL, twice to see Mark perform - The Merry Widow, and The Magic Flute), or a football game (how about them Rose Bowl Hawks?)
There've been some interesting trips:
Feb - a dental meeting in Chicago; and Vince flew to Edmonton, Can. to lecture at a 2-day meeting.
Mar - a dental meeting in Las Vegas - that was . . . interesting. Especially so because Arik drove up from LA to see us, and we also saw both Spence, and his son Steve, and Lyle and Exene (Vince's brothers).
Apr - Mom, Sharon, her daughter Jessica and I flew to DC to visit Dawn, Bob and Heather - both Mom and Heather were quite the sight-seeing troopers!
May - 2 short jaunts - a day to Des Moines, and one to Decorah. Vince had a fishing trip to N. Minn.
June - Vince had a week of fishing in Canada; and we spent part of a week checking out lakes in Mn. We think we might like a lake cabin. Went home via Windom, for a short visit with my brother Gordon and Shirley.
July - Dawn and Heather flew out to visit us - Dawn timed it for her H.S. reunion at Nordic Fest time, so another trip to Decorah.
Aug - Heard the Statler Brothers at a little county fair not far from here.
Sept - Decorah for a day, and Windom for several.
Oct - a trip to Mpls. (Vince went to a continuing ed. course) I took Sharon to the Mn. Historical research building and taught her how to read census films. How exciting!
Nov - one of our trips to Champaign; also Thanksgiving Day in Pekin, IL with Amy and Mark at her folks.
Dawn and Bob are still in DC but are looking for a new duty assignment next spring. They are coming next week for a 10-day visit. We are anxious to see Heather (well, Dawn and Bob, too) - sounds like she keeps her mom busy - running and climbing.
Mark and Amy are still in Champaign, still going to school.
Arik is still in LA (Sherman Oaks) and planning on going back to school, out there.
Jené is still at UNI, second year. She will be taking off the next semester and spending it in Norway. So she is quite excited about that. Actually, we are too; she will be living with us. Vince was granted a developmental leave from the University, and will be doing research with a professor at the University of Oslo. We leave on Jan. 6, will be in Oslo until middle of May, and then hope to travel to Germany, Switzerland, and Great Britain before heading back here on June 12. It should be quite an adventure.
May Jesus, whose birth we celebrate, fill you with His peace throughout this season and the year to come.
P.S. Our address until 15 May in case you want to write or come to visit:
c/o Prof. Jon Gjønnes
Otto Ruges Veien 84A
1345 Østerås Norway
As you turned your calendar to December, did you stop to wonder where the year has gone? I did. And I looked back to see. Each sheet is marked up with birthdays to remember, things to do, places to go, and even money spent. Each month has a lot of repetitions: circle meeting, Norse Club, reading group, postage - $4.40; 22nd - call Mom; go quilt. And each month has some things different: a concert, or a play, or an opera (we drove to Champaign, IL, twice to see Mark perform - The Merry Widow, and The Magic Flute), or a football game (how about them Rose Bowl Hawks?)
There've been some interesting trips:
Feb - a dental meeting in Chicago; and Vince flew to Edmonton, Can. to lecture at a 2-day meeting.
Mar - a dental meeting in Las Vegas - that was . . . interesting. Especially so because Arik drove up from LA to see us, and we also saw both Spence, and his son Steve, and Lyle and Exene (Vince's brothers).
Apr - Mom, Sharon, her daughter Jessica and I flew to DC to visit Dawn, Bob and Heather - both Mom and Heather were quite the sight-seeing troopers!
May - 2 short jaunts - a day to Des Moines, and one to Decorah. Vince had a fishing trip to N. Minn.
June - Vince had a week of fishing in Canada; and we spent part of a week checking out lakes in Mn. We think we might like a lake cabin. Went home via Windom, for a short visit with my brother Gordon and Shirley.
July - Dawn and Heather flew out to visit us - Dawn timed it for her H.S. reunion at Nordic Fest time, so another trip to Decorah.
Aug - Heard the Statler Brothers at a little county fair not far from here.
Sept - Decorah for a day, and Windom for several.
Oct - a trip to Mpls. (Vince went to a continuing ed. course) I took Sharon to the Mn. Historical research building and taught her how to read census films. How exciting!
Nov - one of our trips to Champaign; also Thanksgiving Day in Pekin, IL with Amy and Mark at her folks.
Dawn and Bob are still in DC but are looking for a new duty assignment next spring. They are coming next week for a 10-day visit. We are anxious to see Heather (well, Dawn and Bob, too) - sounds like she keeps her mom busy - running and climbing.
Mark and Amy are still in Champaign, still going to school.
Arik is still in LA (Sherman Oaks) and planning on going back to school, out there.
Jené is still at UNI, second year. She will be taking off the next semester and spending it in Norway. So she is quite excited about that. Actually, we are too; she will be living with us. Vince was granted a developmental leave from the University, and will be doing research with a professor at the University of Oslo. We leave on Jan. 6, will be in Oslo until middle of May, and then hope to travel to Germany, Switzerland, and Great Britain before heading back here on June 12. It should be quite an adventure.
May Jesus, whose birth we celebrate, fill you with His peace throughout this season and the year to come.
P.S. Our address until 15 May in case you want to write or come to visit:
c/o Prof. Jon Gjønnes
Otto Ruges Veien 84A
1345 Østerås Norway
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