Ohhhh...The Joy!!

I suppose that a few people in my adult life know something about my AFS Experience in Chile in 1970, but it hasn't generally been something I've spoken about until this Journey began to allow me to consider returning to Chile this fall. Usually I state that I'm proud to be a Returnee, and leave it at that...though for many years we volunteered with AFS and even hosted kids in our home(s) in California when our kids were small.

The Summer of 1970 was long ago, and not just in time. Four students had been murdered at Kent State. The entire Ivy League shut itself down in protest, and collegians across the world were in revolt. The University at the Sorbonne (Paris) was closed.

In Chile, Salvadore Allende, an avowed Communist, was running for president against America's favorite, a conservative named Allesandri. We were told not to be seen in political demonstrations of any sort, lest the newspapers believe we'd chosen sides...but on our first day in Santiago a photo-op was arranged at the Capital (La Moneda) to meet President Frei. My picture shaking his hand was splashed across the country. (Actually, aside from the political stuff, it was pretty cool. I was on the second page and Pele was all over the paper, given that Brazil had just achieved World Cup victory in Mexico City the day we arrived in Santiago.)

Anyway, without running a diary of the 12 weeks I was there, it was a pure delight for this young man from Lompoc. I met friends, tried to learn some Spanish, was hosted by an amazing family--two sisters and two brothers that were all about the same age, and two of the most wonderful parents I could have asked for. Return was difficult, and communication eventually ended following the Allende election, future coup d'etat, my own immaturity and language barriers. Though I've thought of my family often with love and concern, I never knew what happened after I departed and I've felt guilty about it since. Time nor finances allowed me to return.

In preparation for this trip, then, I started trying to find ways to locate them. Turns out that the phone book white pages for the entire country are online and searchable. No magical Facebook connections are required, we don't need six degrees of separation. Two weeks ago I wrote to the two siblings I could find in the phonebook and Ana, the woman I sorta dated in Los Andes and appears that she still lives there following her marriage. (Thinking of the headline, you know where this is going....)

Last night, one of my host brothers sent email back. The elation I feel is hard to describe. The kids have gone on to get married, have their own kids, move away from the town I visited, Los Andes. Papa died 15 years ago and Mama is suffering with Alzheimer's, but lives with one of my host sisters. We're going to GET TO SEE THEM when we go to Chile. There will be plenty to update with each other between now and then, and the magic of the internet will make it happen. But for now, I'm jumping for joy to know that we've reconnected and will expand our relationship again.

Maybe 1970 wasn't so very long ago, after all. I can sure remember grinning like the village idiot as I was being introduced in class, and not having a clue what anyone was saying....seems like just yesterday.

Team Play

Baker City....this will be a short paragraph. Rather than explaining to the Golf Channel that we'd fallen from T1 last year to T16 this year, and blaming it on a) Tiger's outside life, b) my partner's personal relationship issues or c) medical issues beyond our control....I quickly admitted that we didn't play well enough to win. That cut the interview short and you probably missed it. Still won back our entry fee, though, and had more fun than any other group of eight guys ought to. Well worth the 630 round trip miles in the Mazda, thank goodness Glover was there to help.

"The Magic..." Eric asked if I'd help coach Connor's basketball team of 10's and 11's this summer, but forgot to mention that he'd be gone for three of the eight games. We had game one last week, and yesterday I was solely in charge on my own. In order to protect the fragile egos of the young players, the scoreboard gets turned off when one team achieves a 20 point lead. We didn't make it to halftime with a scoreboard last week, it went dark one minute into the second half last night. Unfortunately, rather than building self esteem for the team that is behind, this tells them immediately that they have no more chance at winning...and they stop defending. I tried everything I could to slow our kids down, but it is awfully hard to tell them to pass on an open lay-up. No final scores are posted, because, once again, it might hurt the fragile young egos to know they'd been blown out by forty....but they all know they've been blown out by forty. So I guess it makes the parents feel better, they can say that their kids hung in there and only lost by 22.

Bluebery Harvest: We have so many blueberries this year that our normal team of five field workers is not enough. I'm always behind, sharing them with others, and looking for someone to join the team. I think "bumper crop" is short for "let's just drive the truck through and bump off as many as we can." I'd expect we'll pick upwards of 12 gallons this year, about four gallons ahead of last year's pace.

And how are these activities connected? They all require teamwork. Coaches step in when others go on vacation. Kids enjoy the dickens out of speeding up the court and actually FINDING an open teammate for a lay-up. One person simply cannot harvest all my blueberries....and playing golf on a team is the only reason I still play. Judy and I get to play in four more team efforts before the summer ends. Knowing that Billy Schlager, in Baker, will pick me up when I hammer a hook into the cow pasture brings a relaxing smile to my face. We're all competitive, regardless of the rules for shutting down the scoreboard, but it is so much more fun to compete when I kow that there is someone to share in the failure and success. More laughter. More stories. I'm compiling a list of basketball team comments and stories, generally because those heard on the golf course are too risque for the library's porn filters....and I'll share those next week when we've had game three.

To say nothing of the team of experts that has guided this health journey for four years.....and supportive members of my personal team, like Jillian, Glover, my parents, Carrie Ellen and the countless others that zip me text messages these days. "Just wondering how you were doing..."

Cooking in Baker City...

This is the week, Oregon is the place. For many years, the highlight of golf season was an annual trip to Palm Desert to play in the Wild Turkey Invitational. That lengthy journey, expense and annualized rite simply became too much a few years ago. Though I miss hanging out with some of the guys, it has easily been replaced by the Baker City Miners' Jubilee. Many of the same Lompoc Fubarians are in attendance--though we can't convince Bobby Kranseler to venture north--and there are only two objectives. Playing golf all day on an easy course, and having fun the rest of the time.

I know this will sound oddly familiar, but some of that fun includes taking naps when we feel like it. Sitting by the pool IF we feel like it. Hanging out at the street dance, watching young kids lie about their ages. They've stood outside the fence for so many years and it is simply time for them to learn what it is like inside. Watching 250 cowboys and cowgirls dance to rap music.

Some readers may recall that partner Bill Schlager scored an ace in Baker last year, on our way towards "T1" as they say on the Golf Channel. We tied for first place out of dozens of teams, we heard something like 78. What that means this year is Billy and I just get to rest on our laurels. If we take too much of their local money, they'll not be happy. If we play badly, there is always the FUN to anticipate. If we play like we normally do, we'll post some good scores, enjoy hydrating ourselves, and laugh more than anyone ought to be allowed.

But is golf with the guys all there is? Let's see...in the past week:

Jillian and I had a terrific time (on a golf course) in a tournament at her old country club. We were graciously invited by friends who've now decided I'm a keeper after ten years, and had a ball. Somehow I'd misplaced a bottle of wine into my golf bag. It didn't take long to share that with the ladies, they seemed to enjoy it tremendously. The format included one THROW per hole, that didn't count towards a score. So if we were in trouble, we simply tossed it out of the trouble spot and into a better posistion. (I know, to some that may sound like the Wild Turkey, but that's another story entirely.) We took home more cash from the raffle than the prize money offered in the tournament, and we really did have a good time with our hosts, Judy and Al Zell. It was nice to be invited, and delightful to play in such a fun format.

We went to two July 4 parties, both required my big Lompoc football parka. The weather didn't turn summer-ish until the golf on the Fifth with Judy, but we still had a good time. Young Caleb, playing first base, won the smacktalk contest with a quick "Come ON, Catch....you coulda had that one" as I was falling to avoid the driveway and certain broken bones. Ended up with some sort of muscle pull, instead, right at the wrong time of the golf season....but the season would have ended early had I landed on the nearby driveway. I already have have a lame excuse about a broken arm, I didn't need another about a cracked kneecap.

The blueberries are in. Got to share dinner with Jon and Nancy after my infusion day, she LOVES my blueberries. Judy is busy organizing harvest parties for this weekend, since it is a "guy trip" to Baker.

Infusion Day, Friday last, went very well. Low key and fast--90 minutes. When I mentioned that I felt a little like I did when I had mono in college...low grade throat infection, lack of energy, etc...we decided to take a urine sample. (Skip this if you want...) Perhaps, to be polite, I should just mention that I have cranberry juice on my diet...and some new medicines in the cabinet. Let's hope that we chase those little demons faster than we're getting to the cancer cells, I do NOT want to watch the The Green Mile.

More to report after Baker. I will have actual houseguests this week, as Glover flies through Portland and drives over with me...and then shortly after we return my parents arrive on their way to Montana. Carrie Ellen is rumored to be on her way up in early August, golf season comes to an end on Labor Day, with the annual Lompoc HS fundraiser. THEN we start talking about Chile and traveling.

Life is good....and involves more than golf. More non-golf in future editions, when we are done cooking in Baker....!

Better Progressions...

Nate is off to Central Oregon because he's on the schedule for dinner service at SunRiver this weekend. Lizzie and Billy are off to Kitty Hawk, sharing warm sunshine with Chuck, Patty and Brian. Vickie is off to camp, leading the way for another generation of teenagers. I've played golf seven times in the past three weeks, and it has been wonderful. So not every step of "progression" comes with a poor connotation!

Some of the golf has been in Central Oregon with my Moral Compass group, sharing time with Jon and Ken at Camp Sherman. Also got a fly-fishing lesson from the old pro, Jon Egge, and he was impressed with my casting. Of course we didn't hook anything, so that chapter is yet unread. Some of the golf was with Nate, who has worked hard on his tempo, hitting real golf shots after quite break over the past 18 months. It is great to see his big arc and strong swing, while I'm slapping away at irons that go pretty straight...just not very far.

As we enter July, golf month gets into full swing...several friendly scrambles, and the return to Baker City for Billy and I as defenders. Jillian and I will even get to play in a hit&giggle event at her old country club, with friends who are kind enough to add me to the mix. Should be a good time, I just hope I can live up to her advertising.

The infusions have been fairly simple. Contrasted with the previous three-four hour sessions, it is really nice to get in and out within 90 minutes. I rest up afterwards, but don't really feel that "punk" after the three/four day period of flushing that this medicine requires. My appetitie is still crummy, but I'm not longer losing weight and just maintaining a constant level. So that's a good thing, and my clothes all fit better, anyway!

I hope your summer is progressing well. We all have progressions in life, we may as well look on the bright side and see the growth involved for each of us.