Well, here we are in the Christmas season again. Another year is almost in the books in our inevitable march toward eternity. I don’t mean to sound like a downer, but we have learned first- hand this year about death being the final act in this play we call life. Three people who were very important in our lives were taken from us this past year. Adolf Moller, Donna’s biological father, passed away in late June. Linda Hall, Carol’s best friend, passed on in early July, and our Mom, Evelyn Jackson, died at age 91 on September 27th. All leave a void in our lives and will be sorely missed. Nonetheless, life is all about living. We experienced some real highs this year also.
We were in New York for over 3 months this summer, spending precious time with friends and family. Donna was up in late September to celebrate her 40th birthday. Unfortunately this was around the time that Mom passed on, so as a result, we got to spend time with daughters Mary and JoAnna also. We had a great celebration of Mom’s life at the Rainbow Lodge after her services, and it was the first time in many years that all five of Mom’s sons were in the same place together. It is unfortunate that it takes death to bring family together in many cases.
Before going to NY we went to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to visit Mary, Victoria and Kaitlyn. Mary was promoted to Staff Sergeant, E-6 in mid- June. Later on in the summer we went to Fort Lee, Virginia, to attend Mary’s graduation from the Army’s Advanced Leadership School for NCO’s. We are very proud of her for choosing to serve her Country as a member of our Armed Forces.
Donna continues to work for Dell, and in fact, earned a big promotion this year. She went overseas on three different occasions. She went to Bratislava, Slovakia; Casablanca, Morocco; and Paris, France. If you “friend” her on facebook you can see her fabulous pictures from these places, plus her trips to Vienna and Prague!! Needless to say, we are very proud of her and are glad to “puppy sit” in her absence. The dogs, Italia and Gigi, are very active and bring a lot of joy to our lives.
JoAnna and Russell recently bought a house in Madison, Mississippi, and we visited them on the way back from NY. Russell continues to be the award- winning Plant Manager for Bates Casket Company in Vicksburg and JoAnna works as a High School Transition Counselor for the Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services. David and Rachel continue to be very active. Both are in the gifted program at their school. David is quite the baseball player and golfer, and both are taking Kung Fu lessons; watch out!!
In March we went to Florida for the wedding of two of my former students, Jamie Adams and Josh Wolfe. We stayed at Lake Manatee State Park and got to renew many old acquaintances while there. While traveling to, or while in NY, we visited with friends and family including; Cousin Mary and Eric Thoreson in Midway, Kentucky; Pat and Doug Thompson and their two sets of twins in Middletown, Maryland; Izetta Foree in Mt. Upton; Carol’s brothers Ed and Ronnie and their families; Donna’s Uncle Horst, Aunt Judy and cousin D.J. Moller in Unadilla; Carol’s cousin Cathy and Gary Bennett, my brothers Sim, Jim and John in Walton. As always we stayed mainly at Brother Tom and Sandra’s house in Oneonta and enjoyed their kids and grandkids as well as Sandy’s relatives. Tom overcame another medical challenge this summer. His fortitude is amazing! Our special niece, Chiropractor Dr. Jennifer Constable, took real good care of us while we were there. I enjoyed playing golf with Gary, Cathy, Sim, D.J. and Horst. We spent some very special time attending services and participating in the life of the Plymouth Church. One of the highlights of our summer was going to Yankee Stadium to watch the Yankees beat the Red Sox in late September. Wait ‘til next year!!
Carol and I are in relatively good health. Carol had a heart catheterization done last week and no problems were found. She is still making fleece blankets for sale and gifts. I am doing wood working projects, am working some part- time jobs, and try to walk several times a week. I have started a blog which you can read at http://davejack-uncommonsense.blogspot.com. (Please!!)
Despite our personal losses, we have had a good year and we wish all of you; friends or family; health, prosperity and happiness in the New Year.
Love to all,
Dave, Carol, Donna, Italia & Gigi
No comments:
Post a Comment