Journey

In my previous post I introduced you to my great-grandmother and how she had children with different last names.  One of them was my paternal grandfather, who was born in born in Guadalajara, Mexico in 1900.

Around 1916 my grandfathers and his (half) brothers decided to come to the United States.

At the immigration office they said they were brothers wanting to cross.

The immigration officer noticed all the last names were different on the paperwork.  He questioned them about it.  Didn’t they say they were all brothers?  Why were their names different?

Rather than complicating things with stories of their mother and all their fathers, the oldest one told them they would use his name, because, well, he was the oldest!

As a result, my grandfather changed his name.  This became my father’s last name, and my maiden name.

The brothers traveled to Kansas City, Kansas.  Some descendants still live there today.

The photo above happens to be taken in Kansas City, Missouri.  Interestingly, the date of this story is only three days from the anniversary of the photo.

When my grandfather was a young man a horrible misfortune struck.

At the time people commonly traveled by hopping aboard moving trains.  Once when he did this, he slipped and fell.  The train badly injured one of his legs.  He developed gangrene and the leg was removed.

My grandfather also journeyed to El Paso, Texas where he met my grandmother.

After they met he tried to get her attention by throwing pebbles at her window.

She didn’t know who was doing this, and she wasn’t really thrilled, so one night she decided to find out. 

She took a large rock and decided to throw it back!  She hit my father in his injured leg, which hadn’t fully healed.  My dad says she felt really bad and felt sorry for him!  Talk about a way to start a romance!

They eventually married.  My grandmother gave birth to my dad’s older brother in El Paso.

To have employment, they traveled to different states in time for the harvesting seasons.

For instance, this photo shows my grandparents and my uncle in Colorado sitting on a pile of sugar beets. My grandmother is also expecting my aunt.

Here, my grandfather, uncle and cousins are also in Colorado with ”the air conditioned car.”

They journeyed to New Mexico, where my dad and aunt were born. Eventually they came to California where more children were born.

The journeys didn’t end there.  At one point the family went to Mexico.  When World War II began, my uncle decided to enlist.

Some of the family stayed in Mexico with my grandmother, and some went with my grandfather and uncle to the U. S.

Eventually they re-united in California.

Some of my grandfather’s siblings returned to Mexico then changed their names back to their original names, even though my grandfather never did.  He did keep his original name as a middle name.

One things I find interesting is that both of my dad’s parents had a changed last name!  For the story behind my grandmother’s name, see my post called Unusual.

“Down” Memory Lane

The WordPress theme was “Down.”   I mulled over this theme for a while.  I didn’t really have any photos that had to do with heights, or, with the emotions that occur when one is down.  I finally settled on taking a walk down memory lane.   I hope you enjoy my little stroll.

My parents met at a church youth group in Southern California in 1949. They were married in 1953 when my dad was on leave from Fort Ord, California.  He had just finished basic training. He was later stationed in Germany during the Korean conflict.

 

My mom’s parents lived with us about half of the year.  During the other half of the year they would visit family in Mexico. The trips to Mexico occurred regularly until my grandfather had a change in health and could no longer travel.

I was accustomed to having three generations in the household.  We used to say the family consisted of my parents, grandparents, six kids and a dog (or two).

    

I happen to be the fourth of the six of us. As you might imaging we had a very active family. Like any home we had our ups and downs. That being said it was generally noisy, hectic and happy.

When I was in high school someone gave me a very large postcard in honor of my family. It said: “Welcome to the House of Perpetual Commotion.”

It was perfect.   We displayed the postcard proudly for years.  Everyone who saw it agreed that it fit!

The photos below were taken on the last Thanksgiving that was spent in the house.  The family had grown to include daughters and sons-in-law plus grandkids.

The children in the last photo are grown.  Some of them now have children of their own.

I know this is just a small glimpse of my family and its history.   My walk down memory lane brought back a lot of fond memories.  I had a good laugh thinking about ideas for future stories.

I hope it also causes you to take  your own stroll and to recount times that you can remember fondly.

Start of 2012 – No New Year Resolutions Here

I just read a Facebook post by my sister.  Looks like she has a lot of milestones ahead and much to do in 2012.  She has a lot of energy and is very vibrant.  Good for her! Looks like her year will be filled with a lot of activities.

Funny how siblings can sometimes be so different!

I started the year quietly and slowly.  I would like to ease into the new year, but I know better.  I was away from work for the last week of the year.  It was been extremely relaxing.  I couldn’t have asked for more.

I know the moment I get back to work everything will take off very quickly.  My calendar will be full and I will be extremely busy.  I savor the moments of quiet whenever I can take them.

Years ago I decided not to make resolutions for the new year.  It turned out to be a significant decision.  I came to the realization that resolutions are not just for the new year. There is responsibility in this as decisions to improve one’s self are on-going. They can be made any day and renewed every day.

Sure, there are some things that I would like to do in the coming year.  I used to play music on a regular basis.  I stopped a couple of years ago.  I had lost the desire to play.  I had to let that part of me go for a time.

That part of me is stirring again.  It’s something that I suspect I will explore.  It doesn’t mean I’m inclined to play publicly as I had in the past; however, the fact that I’m sensing this part of me is important.  I need to listen to that.

There are also areas in my life where I could use a bit of a push.  I don’t need to make any resolutions.  These hurdles are staring me in the face so I just need to get moving! No surprises there.

I started this blog as one means of being creative.  I’m enjoying this expression.  I know I’ll continue.  I don’t expect to post every day, but weekly is do-able.  *Thank-you to all who follow my journey.*

I can’t predict what the new year will bring.  I’m okay with that.

You can call it a trust walk, or a faith walk.  It’s important for me to acknowledge this.  It’s at the center of who I am.

No matter what, when I wake up every morning I intrinsically know that I have one more day to bless and to be blest.

Have a safe and prosperous new year.  Make it a good one, no matter what you resolve to do.

From Journal to Blog – In-flight on 9/12

I don’t remember the last time I saw the airport this crowded.  At least the line was moving.  Boarding time was now only 15 minutes away.  Flight time…45 minutes.

I gathered all my belongings after getting through security.  Once I entered the terminal I saw someone I knew who was traveling with family.  What were the odds?

The sunrise was lovely to see from the plane.  There was orange light from the sun peeking out on the horizon.  Unfortunately the view was cut short when a passenger closed the window shade.  Ah well.  I can understand that as the glare is really bad from the east window.

The flight from San Antonio to Minneapolis was very smooth.  I had never flown this route to my final destination, Des Moines.  I looked at the magazine in the seat pocket to get the layout of the airport.  The flight arrived early so I had more than one hour until the next leg of the journey.  I decided to walk to the next terminal.

I arrived at the next gate 20 minutes later.  Thank goodness for rolling luggage!

The Minneapolis airport is very clean and bright.  I cannot fathom what the area would look like in the winter.

I called Al to say that I had arrived.  I usually text but I wanted to hear his voice.  Partially through our
conversation I spotted a familiar face; someone from the office that I would not have expected to see.  Running into two people in one day while traveling!  Go figure!

Al and I said our good-byes and I called out to my friend.  We hugged and laughed.  Who would ever expect we’d meet here?  We were taking the same flight but had different (work) destinations.  I gave her some
restaurant recommendations are we wished each other safe travels.

As the plane taxied and took off I was struck by the landscape…very open… all those trees… a number of small lakes…a limited but very beautiful view from my window seat.  As the flight progressed I could see the landscape changing.

I often work while on plane trips.  Not this time.  I’m glad I had the chance to chronicle my thoughts.  I didn’t have a personal laptop on this flight so I chose to use a journal instead.

The flight attendant announced our descent into Des Moines.  As I looked out the window again I was also struck by the fact that you can’t see borders from the sky.  There is one large expanse of land.  I don’t know where one state begins and another one ends.

Whether it’s farmland or a city, houses or high-rises, from the air it’s just one place, just one land.
Quite a sight to see.

Post Script (Trip to SoCal)

Post Script:  The following Friday morning Berta called.  Pedro passed away peacefully that morning.  His wife, daughter and sister were with him in his final moments.

While the previous post tells of my brief visit in San Diego, I realize it does not adequately express all that Al’s family did to care for Pedro.  Throughout difficult times that included emergencies, hospitalizations, medical appointments and hospice care, the family did all they could to ensure that Pedro was always treated with respect and dignity.  Their love and care for him was clearly evident.

To Al’s family – May God bless and comfort you in your sorrow and bring peace to you hearts.  Amen.