Montana!

Dear Reader: From Friday, August 21st to Sunday, August 23rd, 2020 Anne and I and our sons Kyle and Clayton and their families, and our dear friends Jamie and Laura Rosenwald went to Montana to visit our son Kevin, and his family.

Jamie flew us there and back on a private jet, the first time Anne and I had ever flown on a private jet, and Kyle provided the food and the rooms at The Lodge at Whitefish Lake. What follows is a summary and a video of the trip, prepared by Clayton's wife, Maria who does a marvelous job documenting our family gatherings:

A Little Joy, A Little Laughter

Dear Reader: Finding joy and laughter are an essential part of my life so regularly I take a bad news story and write some humor into it. The following two pieces are typical examples. In both cases, I shared them with Yanin Ontiveros, who works with my son Kyle: 

A Homeless Man

Yesterday evening, as I drove home with hot dinners for Anne and me in the trunk, I saw something unusual for this area.

It was a homeless man. He was laying face up, his upper torso raised, on a sidewalk at the entrance to a church parking lot.

I turned the car around and drove back to check on him to be sure he was okay, as I stopped next to him. He smiled and told me he was fine.

Can I Have Another Hour

This afternoon, as the bright sunlight set my backyard aglow, I saw where Impatiences once bloomed and my four-year-old granddaughter Carina picked some of them for her grandmother.

She would happily pick the red and pink and yellow and gold and blue blossoms and put them in a bowl of water for them to float.

At times, I would object because so many of the blossoms disappeared from the yard. But alas I saw my foolishness and encouraged little Carina to pick them to her heart’s content.

A Wonderful World

In a world saying never, these are ways I shall make it better:

I will smile warmly to others, listen to what they say, wish them a wonderful day.
I will compliment all the good, withhold my criticism but share my witticism.
I will be kind to all in deed, generous to those in need and to their heart-spoken words I will heed.
I will welcome others into traffic and into each grocery line, for I seek for us to bind.

I will, if you have a bad day, and we meet say, "Welcome dear friend, do not fear, for together we are here to make bad times disappear." And maybe, just maybe you will say, "I hope again he comes my way."

With Love To All - Dick

The Meaning Of Life

As a 75-year-old man who has long embraced and explored life, especially on a spiritual level, this to me is The Meaning Of Life:

Being Interviewed By 6-Year-Old Ikaika

Last night on Thanksgiving, Anne's and my 6-year-old grandson Ikaika interviewed me for his 1st grade class project about the Kazan family history.

Ikaika was joined by his mom Diane, who took notes and also helped put my answers in context and by his big brother Keoni who also explained the answers to him.

Ikaika asked why our family came to America and from where, who came and when, and did war play a role.