Category Archives: Social

The Hana Chronicles: Month7, Day 5

0
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Inner Struggles, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Travel

July 26,2026- When I got back from my Red Cross volunteer stint, this afternoon, the family was gone. A bit later, I received a photo of Aram enjoying a gelato cone, while Hana looked up at him, wistfully. The little girl is grateful for all the nutritious food we give her, but I think part of her wishes she could have have the treats we enjoy.

Her father is convinced that, as long as she can’t speak English or Korean fluently, she is not really thinking. I see too much of her, day to day, to ever make that mistake. She and I have a deeper communication, and she will not hesitate to tell me what she is feeling, even using English phrases, every so often.

At dinner, she had her first taste of pureed stewed tomatoes. She grimaced at the first few bites, then took the rest without any fuss. When she saw us laughing at her grimaces, she laughed also. I am glad that my granddaughter doesn’t have a congenital feeling of inferiority. I hope she will keep on being able to laugh at herself.

HANA’S NOTE- I like to try new foods. I just wish they included the stuff that’s in the cones that Mommy and Daddy were eating today. Maybe some day, I will get to try it.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1978 The Maine years drew to a close, in September. It was 45 F ,(7 pm, EDT) at Bangor International Airport, when I boarded an American Airlines jet, bound for Phoenix. I landed at Sky Harbor at 11 pm, MST. It was 104 F.

To no one’s surprise, I was let go at the end of the school year, due to “budget constraints”. I was actually glad to be leaving. The Title I math tutoring job was alright, but I didn’t fit in well. I spent a month or so working in the summer program, called Maine Journeys-an interesting premise that took seventh graders around the state, even into New Brunswick-and Mactaquaq Park, near Fredericton. I just didn’t have the composure to tolerate admittedly minor misbehaviour. It was time to leave.

My sister, Cheryl, and her boyfriend, Steven, were married in late June, so I hitched my way down for the wedding. Going back was by Greyhound. After staying at a boarding house in Dexter, west of Bangor, and helping the owner paint her front porch, I landed a job at a Boarding School for the children of wealthy patrons, in Toltec, Arizona-halfway between Phoenix and Tucson. Before I left, Mrs. Knox told me that I’d enjoy my Thirties (I was 27 at the time) and that Arizona was full of breathtaking sights.

I arrived at Villa School (later called Villa-Oasis School), in the company of my immediate supervisor, Patrick Giovanditto, who got me situated into a spacious apartment, around midnight. The next day, I met the Headmaster and his wife, and the administrative team.The students showed up a week later. I was the senior high math teacher. The lessons went fairly well. I was additionally given the assignment of teaching Physics to one Senior, an otherwise pleasant young man from Australia, who had absolutely no interest in the subject. Before we really established any kind of footing, though, he got into a loud argument with one of the administrators and was expelled. The administrative process was rather strict, and several of the brighter, more outspoken students found themselves in similar states.

The Villa was, if nothing else, my gateway into Arizona. I explored much of the central part of the state, during the Fall and, at Christmas time, joined one of the administrators on a road trip as far as Michigan. We stayed at a 5-Star hotel, in the Chicago Loop,as it was managed by his brother. I stayed in a room whose last occupant had been Henry Fonda. I don’t think I’ve been in such swanky digs, before or since.After he dropped me off near Ann Arbor, I found a ride to Toledo, and from there caught a bus to Boston. New England for the holidays was again a special treat.

My climb out of the emotional hole I had dug was well underway.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 7, Day 4

0
Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Fiction, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 25,2026- Hana has two new toys. One is a plush crab, that mimics any sound it hears. So, she hears her own vocalizations “squeaked’ back to her. She hears the same, when one of us is near her and speaks. She doesn’t seem fazed by it, one way or the other. The other toy is a bumble bee pack pack, with the antennae fitting over her head and the wings and honey sac as her backpack. In truth, these seem more for her mother’s enjoyment than anything that might interest Hana. She may, eventually, develop an interest in them; we’ll see.

She is mostly just happy that it’s the weekend and she has Mommy and Daddy, as well as me. Among other things, she gets to snuggle with her parents, in the master bed, on Saturday and Sunday mornings. It gratifies me to see that happening. She will be much more secure, as time goes on.

I made my Saturday morning visit to Plano Farmer’s Market and stopped by H.E.B., on the way back. I got zucchini, which Hana likes in pureed form. Other items in my bags will be for her to enjoy later. The rest of the day, the three loved ones rested and I cleared some of the bags and boxes that were brought back from storage, several weeks ago. Mind over matter.

HANA’S NOTE- I think the copy cat crab is silly. I am not sure what is so special about copying my voice.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1977 This was the year in which I felt the fullness of not having stuck it out at UMass Boston, in 1969 I managed to serve my country and to earn my Bachelor’s Degree. Still, there was an emptiness and I know it was about Katie. She had a good life and I wasn’t going to go and mess things up for her. I stayed in Maine and carried on.

In February, one of my housemates decided he didn’t want me in the house, citing the disappearance of some of his venison and of his watch. In reality, he, his girlfriend and the other housemate had eaten most of the venison. He was later seen wearing the watch. What did happen was that I had to walk through the bedroom he shared with his girlfriend, to get to my room. The young lady asked who I was and said she thought I was cute. That was the deal breaker. I moved out, and found a family that had a room available. I stayed with the Robinsons for nearly a year, so it was a soft landing.

The other thing that happened that month was I drove up to Winter Carnival in Quebec, with three young ladies along. I left them off at a dorm they had booked and found a hotel room. The carnival itself was lovely, as usual. The drive back was a disaster. We drove through a blizzard, as far as Skowhegan, in western Maine. That was where I ran out of gas. They hitched the rest of the way to Orono, and I stayed behind with the car, finding cheap accommodations-an empty jail cell. In Maine, back then, the sheriffs would put up law abiding citizens who were in dire straits, for 1-2 nights. The next day, with help from my cousin, I got to a bank, got money out and retrieved my car. I was glad to see March 1.

The year had its good moments. The summer was spent mostly tooling around Maine and New Brunswick. I was given a new assignment for the 1977-78 school year, acting as Title I Math Tutor. My middle brother married his high school sweetheart, in October.

The emptiness, though, remained. I thought of the Star Wars film series, which came out tn May. “The only way is through.”

The Hana Chronicles: Month 7, Day 3

1
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Historical, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 24, 2026- When I rest my head on the large plush lion, while with Hana in her play pen, my granddaughter sits quietly next to me, as if watching over her Papa. Aram would do the same thing with Penny and me, when he was a baby.

Hana looks at my watch, very intently, when it is about the normal time for her parents to get home from work. It has Roman numerals on it, but somehow, between the position of the numerals and her own internal clock, she knows it is time for their return. If they are late, she starts calling “mama mama mama” or “oma”.

Our walk today took us past the nearest elementary school. I told Hana that, if we are still here when she reaches school age, that will be her school. She gave a big smile at that news. It is just past a pleasant section of Hoblitzelle Park, and a bridge over Russell Creek. She likes going that way, on our walks, as do I.

She has had a good week, despite the intense heat of Monday and Tuesday.

HANA’S NOTE- Papa doesn’t know it, but I have been looking at his watch, when Mommy or Daddy come home, every night for a while now. I don’t know what the letters mean, but I know that’s when our family is all together again.

YEAR In REMEMBRANCE-1976 This was our nation’s Bicentennial. When Independence Day came around, I was again working at Quisisana, for the summer. I went with the Staff Waiter, to Bridgton, his home town, and took in the festivities there. We each had an open can of beer, which a police officer spotted and told us that was illegal; then he just walked away. We finished our beers and found a trash can. The other thing about Quisi was that I did not make any lasting friends this time around. I was less focused, having spent the months after my graduation, substitute teaching in Saugus and up the road, in North Reading. Neither town had opportunities for a new teacher; the waiting list for a Social Studies teacher was quite lengthy and the oldest teachers were in their late fifties, not at all ready for retirement. It was also during my time at Quisisana that a family member suffered a horrible injury and we lost someone very close to our family, in the same accident. That sent me on a tailspin, and I made serious errors in judgement with regard to some budding friendships.

After Quisisana, I went up to the Bangor area, and subsisted between substitute teaching at Bangor Junior High and High School and tutoring a homebound student in a nearby town. I lived in a boarding house for a time, then moved in with a couple of young men who had advertised for a roommate. That lasted until mid-February of the following year. While there, I lived a quiet life and disturbed on one. In November, I was hired as a Title I Paraprofessional, whose responsibility was to run a self-contained program for eight emotionally-handicapped middle school boys. It was in a rural school district. I put together what could best be described as a patchwork program. I had no real administrative support and no background in the field of Special Education. I was a warm body, who showed up most days. It did no one much good.

Other than being close to a large family of a paternal uncle, aunt and cousins, and enjoying many lovely parts of Maine, the decision to re-locate there was not one of my brightest moves.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 7, Day 1

0
Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Historical, Inspiration, Matters of Faith, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

July 22, 2026-Hana started her new month with a new behaviour- wanting to more actively take part in Story Time. She wants to be able to look at a page for several minutes after I have read the words. She focuses on the pictures and the form of the words. She also likes to touch the page, especially if it has a smooth texture.

She laughs a lot more now, taking delight in all of my antics and silly songs. Once, this afternoon, she put her hand over my mouth.hen I was singing to her-then she started laughing. She also likes to tip a tower of rings over, as soon as I put the rings back on. It is just another of the games that get invented by infants, using their observational skills.

We went on our morning walk early, again this morning, thus avoiding the later 105 degree still air. Few people were along the path, but there was a group of Middle School Track Team members, getting ready for what was hopefully a brief pre-season workout. Hana, for her part, spent part of the walk asleep in her stroller.

HANA’S NOTE- I want to know what this reading thing is. The stories that Papa reads to me are sometimes exciting and other times just silly. I am looking at the pictures and making little stories in my mind. Sometimes, I dream of them.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1974 I spent my first year at UMass-Amherst living in a co-ed dorm. Having a large group of brothers and sisters was nothing new, so I was quite relaxed. Still, ever the rube, I used my antiquated record player-which became known as The Set”. Most everyone else had a boom box, state-of-the art stereo systems, etc. I was okay with what I had. I was also the “editor” of a residence quad newsletter called “The Sage-Revisited” and I delivered The New York Times around campus, six days a week. That lasted about five months, then I forgot yo change the code to “Sunday”, a bunch of Sunday Times were ripped off and i left that job. The editor position wasn’t much more successful. I did a lot better, academically than in extracurriculars.

I kept encountering Baha’is in Amherst, though I remained Catholic. I did not find the Newman Center (Catholic student union and parish) very supportive of us students, so in hindsight, I might have made more inquiries into the Baha’i Faith-my second Residential Assistant, and one other RA across the Quad, were Baha’is. I babysat our RA’s infant daughter on at least one occasion. (I would later meet both mother and daughter, at Baha’i gatherings in Arizona, in the 1990s.) The Dean of the College of Education was also a Baha’i.

Summer of 1974 was mostly spent at a resort hotel in western Maine. Quisiana was/is a music camp, so there was a wealth of musical talent. I wasn’t part of that talent. I worked as a busboy, did a credible job and explored a lot of Maine, those eight weeks. Young women floated in and out of my life, which was okay. I have never been much for brief affairs.

This was the summer of Goodbye, Nixon. The staff dining room attendant made the announcement of the President’s resignation, on August 2. It was a quiet day, otherwise. This potentially unsettling year was like my one encounter with a juvenile moose-could have been troublesome, but …Nah

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 30

0
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

July 21, 2026- My little girl cried for nearly a half hour, this afternoon, before finally letting go and falling asleep on my shoulder. She sometimes is so tired that, like many a toddler, she fights sleep, while remaining miserable. She has a little way to go, before being a toddler, but her mindset is already there.

On either side of the meltdown, Hana was happy-with her lunch, with our little walk, with playtime and with the story I read. We went outside while it was still relatively mild (87 F). The temperature eventually hit 107. We didn’t have to face any of that.

This caps six months of life outside the womb. In that time span, Hana has mastered crawling with her body elevated, sitting up independently, eating pureed solid food, sipping water from a cup with a straw, feeding herself with a soft spoon and calling for her mother and father by title.

HANA’S NOTE- I was so tired this afternoon, I just cried and cried. Papa was patient and I slept in his arms for a long time. i heard him say it was one and a half hours-whatever those are.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1973 This was the second year at North Shore Community College. I had to leave the Beverly house, in May, because the owner sold the house and we all dispersed. After looking around at different options, I went back to my parents’ house. Work was at United Parcel Service, sorting packages by destination, in the wee hours of the weekdays. I also worked security at Crane Beach, in Ipswich, MA during the summer and in the stockroom at our local Sears, Roebuck, during the fall. This was a year for taking in the Winter Carnival in Quebec City, running a college tour to Montreal and taking a road trip to Prince Edward Island, in early June.

I ended the year by preparing to transfer to the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. I did credibly at NSCC, earning an Associate Degree in General Studies.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 28

0
Posted by on in children, collaborating, distraction issues, Family, Historical, impediments, Personal Values, Social, Spiritual, Striving, Travel

July 19,2026- “I want this!”- So said my granddaughter, as she sat on my lap, while I was reading my Baha’i prayer book, this morning. I let her touch the cover and the pages, but not pull on them. She understood, after I explained the reason, a second time. It is nice that she wants to hold such a comforting book.

We went to Costco, as a family, this afternoon. Hana is not yet curious about stuff. She basically looks at what people are doing-especially other children teasing their parents. She had no reaction today, at a little boy trying to keep things away from his mother. On other occasions, she has babbled at another child, in a scolding tone. Today, she was in a more pensive mood.

In the evening, we had Hana in a swim vest, and she kicked her legs several times, in forward motion, in a half full bathtub. With a full protective suit and three of us hovering, she was perfectly safe and felt more relaxed.

HANA’S NOTE- I like to handle things-and put my mouth on them. My grown-ups won’t let me “eat” some things. I try to do that anyway. Books taste yucky!

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1971 My first experience with the Pacific Northwest=11 different forms of weather, in 24 hours, at Fort Lewis, WA. My first experience with Japan- Yokota Air Force Base was a miserable place, with bad weather and miserable American civilians, who disdained us grunts. My experiences with VietNam- Mostly kind, gentle locals worked on the bases at Long Binh and at Cholon. I was seen as a “newbie”, at Long Binh, especially by those who had come in from combat units, in the back country. One of them changed his tune, after I defended him from the unit’s self-styled alpha male, while I was assistant Charge of Quarters, overnight. I managed the Accountable Mail cage,both at Long Bin and at Cholon. Long Binh was touch and go. I was there from March until July.

When said alpha male threatened me, for having embarrassed him before the unit, I was transferred to Cholon, a small unit in Saigon’s Chinatown. There was no word on what happened to him. Sergeant First Class Hobson, the operations sergeant, just thought I’d be better off at Cholon. I was, as it happened. I had good friends there-Bill, Arnie, Richie, Roger. At Long Binh, I had been mostly an outsider.

I spent four days in Sydney, on a Rest & Rehabilitation leave, in September and spent much of that time with two sisters, who my buddy Bill had met, on his R&R, earlier. I was rather a rube, during those days, but I did enjoy my time with them and a visit to Tauranga Park. I also visited Vung Tau, a beach town, southeast of Saigon. We were told that the Viet Cong also used Vung Tau as a resort, but I basically stayed with a small group of other soldiers and met no trouble that day. Once, while I was still at Long Binh, my cousin Johnny came by, as he was stationed in the Mekong Delta and had an errand to run on the base. That was one of the best days in a rather miserable place.

In November, right after the guys threw a surprise party for my 21st birthday, I was given the chance to apply for early release, to return to college. I put in for it, got approval and my time in VietNam came to an end, with the new year.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 26

0
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Historical, Inner Struggles, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Striving, Travel

July 17,2026- Hana and I were asleep in the recliner, so deeply that I didn’t notice Aram going in and out to get the mail. My granddaughter has the same calming effect on me that I have on her.

We had a busy “half day”, in that her parents came home from work early, to take her to a medical appointment. We thus managed our walk, “wrestling” (her crawling on me and my lifting her up in the air, in vestibular motion) and lunch time into a shorter frame. There was also story time, centered on “Sleeping Beauty”. Maleficent is portrayed in this brief version only as the “Old Fairy”. She ends up getting turned into a frog. Hana thought that was funny.

She is always overjoyed when one of us comes back to the house, after having been away for a brief errand. Having the family all together is a big deal to my granddaughter. She is delighted to just sit in the high chair at each meal, even at breakfast, which for her is a liquid feeding, still. She has complete meals at lunch and dinner.

HANA’S NOTE- I went to have my blood checked-AGAIN. This time, the nurse only stuck me once with the needle. So, that was not as bad.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE- 1969 This was a year of firsts: My first time on an airplane; my first trip outside New England; my first extended time away from family; my first time really hallenging myself.

I left Star Market in January and went to work at General Electric’s Riverworks Plant, in Lynn, MA. My fahter, and several relatives and neighbours worked there, as well. Dad got me in. I worked in the rotometer calibration section. The senior technician told me my work was substandard, but he never bothered complaining to the higher=ups. Nor did he offer specific criticism that might have helped me improve.

It was a placeholder job, anyway, as I had asked the Army Reserve Unit to let me enlist in the Regular Army. My plan was to enlist for 3 years, then apply for an early release, so as to return to college. My enlistment date was set for June 16, and the recruiter determined I’d be best suited for the Army Postal Corps. I left G.E. on May 1, and focused somewhat on physical training.

Basic Training was at Fort Jackson, SC. I started off as a mewling klutz, but slowly and surely got with the program. I scraped by in marksmanship, missed Combat Fire-but never was made to re-take it, though I asked to do so, and excelled in the Physical Training Test. I did fairly well in the G-3 (General Knowledge) Exam, which was oral. On weekends, we had free time, and I went with a couple of guys who were from Columbia, to their favourite hangouts. I was the sole White guy with four African-Americans, but none of the Whites we encountered gave us any trouble over it.

Woodstock happened while I was doing things like learning how to properly handle grenades and re-sight my M-16. We were brought into a room and allowed to watch the launch of the first Apollo rocket to the Moon. Training was canceled that day. I made enough of an improvement that the cadre sent me on a 3-day pass to Myrtle Beach, on Labor Day weekeend.. I saw that there was little difference between it and the beach towns of New England, though the water was warmer. I stayed in a two-bed shack for $1 a night, and had the place to myself.

Fort Ben Harrison and the postal training were footnotes. I didn’t really bond with anyone in the unit, but went into Indianapolis by myself a few times on weekends. I never did get to the racetrack, though. Many of the guys went to VietNam, after AIT. I was sent to Fort Myer, Va. I was assigned to straighten out a mail operation, as my predecessor had ended up in Fort Leavenworth, for various postal crimes. That made a distinct impression on me. I got the job done quickly, to the satisfaction of the Inspector General. That November, a high school friend was killed in Viet Nam, and I began to re-assess what my responsibilities were. I fasted that Thanksgiving, and decided to give Fort Myer a year, after which I would re-assess my situation. Seeing Washington, D.C. on weekends was great fun, though, and I began to bond with civilians in the Georgetown neighbourhood, whose views on life were similar to my own.

Thus did the ’60s come to an end.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 25

0
Posted by on in children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, impediments, Personal goals, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 16, 2026- Hana is becoming increasingly concerned with cleanliness. She wipes her play pen with a clean cloth, She hates having a soiled diaper and fusses until she is perfectly clean again. (This may be a good time to lobby for a toddler potty, but we’ll take that cause up very soon.) She wipes her own face after a meal.

We went out around 9:30, this morning. The road crews were already hard at work, so we went along the north sidewalk, then across to Hoblitzelle Park and back through the quieter areas of Greenfield Avenue, where work had been finished. The park was fairly active, but the return route was nearly deserted. Hana occupied herself with singing and with feeling the texture of the bug net. She drew lots of smiles and compliments from people passing by us.

I have heard from friends elsewhere, who are concerned that the storm now ravaging central Texas might be headed our way. We had three intense showers today, but our cul-de-sac is well away from any flowing water, and the kids reported there was no flooding on the roads to Coppell and Euless, where they work. I ache for the people in San Antonio and points west and south, who are again getting the brunt of the flooding.

HANA’S NOTE- I like to take baths, so I am glad that I can sit up on my own now. It makes bath night much more fun.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE-1968 This was my first big transition, since 1956. I graduated high school, not wanting to make a big deal of it, but also wondering about what was next. Graduation summer found me mostly working at Star Market, basically treading water. I would continue there until the end of my semester at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, to which I commuted each day, in the Fall of that year.

I made friends in Boston, and started off on a good foot, academically. A month in, though, I was more interested in parties and protests than in studying. That lack of focus cost me a girl I might have truly loved. She was serious about her education. I wasn’t really serious about much of anything.

So, December, 1968 found me thinking about what, exactly, I was going to do to discipline myself. It was too late for Katie, but I was going to have a redeemed life, somehow. I enlisted in the Army Reserves- a six-year commitment. I also agreed to work at the General Electric plant where my father worked.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 24

0
Posted by on in Assistance, children, collaborating, Community, Education, Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

July 15, 2026- Hana is taking on small responsibilities, with regard to getting dressed and feeding. She puts her sleeves through the body bib at lunchtime and can feed herself if someone puts food on the spoon and hands it to her. She chooses which of two outfits she wants to wear for the day and helps put the onesie or dress over her head. She also sits up straight in the plastic bath tub and is better about letting her mother wash her hair. She already likes to “wipe” the play mat, using a small bamboo cloth.

She is learning a lot by watching the three of us do different tasks. We describe what we are doing, step by step, and she listens with rapt attention. With repetition, much of this will register, as the months roll on. As I mentioned above, she has pretty much mastered sitting up. If she is tired, it helps her to have someone or something to hold onto, but otherwise, my granddaughter is on track, developmentally.

Today, we sat by the window and watched the cement truck pour concrete into the forms for the new sidewalk and landing. After a few minutes, she became more interested in feeling the curtain, but went back to watching the cement pouring after that. We stayed in today, because of the work being done, especially as there was really no room for a stroller anywhere in our immediate front walk.

HANA’S NOTE- I took my medicine tablet by myself, when Papa gave it to me, and I made it dissolve in my mouth. After another little while, I put my arms in the big bib. I like to be helpful.

YEAR IN REMEMBRANCE- 1967 (I am writing this part, so that Hana may read these reflections, when she gets old enough, and will understand things that happened to her Grandfather.) Junior year saw me break a few rules and set myself on a path with some bad choices. I never got in trouble with the Law, fortunately, but I know my use of alcohol hurt my parents’ hearts and it did me no favours, in the long run. I went to work at Star Market, shortly after I turned 16. As it was three miles from my home, I got rides for the first few months. Then, thanks to the long-suffering, but fastidious, Coach Wall, I earned my Driver’s License. I learned to scan the road on both sides of me, very quickly, and managed to not have an accident, for nearly 47 years-and then, only because someone tampered with the brakes of my car. As for my work at Star, I was diligent, but also maddeningly slow in going about my work. It would have helped, had I listened to my supervisors, but the 16-year-old Gary was not so ready to do that.

The first part of my Senior year saw a budding interest in writing gain support from our English teacher, Mrs. Vande. That course was probably one of the most rewarding classes I’ve had. It’s largely why I am here now. Mr. Quinlan took us through Algebra II. I had two history classes: Latin American History, very rewarding and Asian History, which was fascinating, but for the incompetence of the teacher, proved annoying. Business Law, taught by our then-State Representative, was one of the most useful classes I’ve ever had. Coach Wall and Mr. Bly are two of the reasons I’ve kept out of trouble. Bob Powers, at Star Market, would have been a third, had I listened to the poor man.

The Hana Chronicles: Month 6, Day 23

0
Posted by on in children, Community, Education, Family, Historical, Inner Struggles, Personal Values, Social, Striving, Travel

July 14, 2026– Lunch is peaceful, when a bit of tactile feeding is involved. The food that ends up in Hana’s hands, as opposed to the spoon with which I feed her most of it, still ends up in her mouth-either by her own actions or by my scooping it from the body bib, high chair tray or food catcher at the base of the chair. What little finds its way to an unsanitary area, like the foot rest of the high chair-or the floor, is of course, discarded. She ate everything on her plate today.

How lunch proceeds also depends on the quality of her mid-morning nap. Even though that was brief today, she was energetic and happy, when she woke up. So, she probably slept pretty deeply. We also went out earlier than normal, so she had the extra pleasure of a cooler morning walk.

Hana is calling us “Papa”, “Daddy” and “Mama” more these days. She even used her own name and pointed to herself, for the first time, this afternoon. Her vocalizations, in general, have vastly increased, this week. She can also be quite loud.

HANA’S NOTE- I am happy with my name-and happy with the meals that Mama leaves for me. They feel nice and taste good.

YEAR IN REMEMBTANCE0 1966 Sophomore year went well, in every subject except Algebra I. Coach Stead tried his best, but I till didn’t get the hang of it. I managed to finally get a B in the course, in Mr. Quinlan’s summer course.

Most of our family summer vacations entailed a few days somewhere in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and 2-3 days at Johns Pond, in Mashpee, on Cape Cod. This year, after Mashpee, we took a day trip from nearby Woods Hole to Martha’s Vineyard. I like walking around Vineyard Haven, but more enjoyed a visit to a Wampanoag community, on the west of the island.

Junior Year, in the fall, brought Geometry, Chemistry and U.S. History, along with a dismal year of French- mostly because it entailed memorizing long lists of conjugated verbs-not my jam, then or now. One of my best friends was a freshman girl, who I had met at the beach over the summer. She was dating a sophomore boy, who also became a good friend. He and I sat in the back of Geometry Class and enjoyed one another’s snarky humour. We also managed to get through the class with Cs.

I hung out with a variety of kids this year. I had a ways to go with picking up on social cues, Joan and Charlie, to whom I alluded earlier, helped a lot, as did several of the guys in my neighbourhood- even though their name for the group was rather lame: “The Ave. Boys”. (We lived on or near Adams Avenue.) I walked over to Howard Johnson’s Restaurant, where one of the kids on my street worked. A number of teens from Saugus and nearby Melrose gathered there, mostly during the summer nights. We seldom drew the attention of the police-but Officer Gus Belmonte would chat us up and made it clear he expected no trouble from anyone. Gus was one of the better cops.