Tonight I am celebrating.

The Park District gave final approval for the memorial to 43 soldiers from Northbrook who died while in service to our country. I am so pleased - they will be remembered!

Groundbreaking on Memorial Day - dedication at Shermerfest. Five years of research = 42 names. Eight hours on Facebook = 43 names!

Jay, I remembered you today as I sat in your school and heard the resounding vote! Rand, you were in my thought too. The 1972 interview your mother gave to the Northbrook Star has stayed with me since I discovered it several years ago. In it, she said, . . . "I think he wanted to be remembered." Now he will be - as will all the others whose names will be on the memorial with him.

These men have been my passion for years - I can still recall the feeling that came over me as I stumbled upon the grave of Philip Arnold in small National Cemetery in Quincy, Illinois and realized that I was most likely the first person from "home" that stood beside his grave and honored him for his service. Wounded at Shiloh in April 1862, he died more than three months later in July while a patient at the hospital in Quincy.

I am so proud that all the funds have been raised and that:

• The Historical Society agreed to take on the this project
• The Northbrook Park District agreed to let us build in the Village Green
• The Northbrook Rotary Club was the first organization to step up to partner with the Historical Society
• The American Legion - named for one of the boys whose name will be on the memorial agreed to be our partner
• The Northbrook Civic Foundation who has given so much to our Village agreed to be our partner
• The Village of Northbrook honored their hometown heroes when they agreed to be our partner
• The Northbrook High School Alumni Association partnered with us. Several of the men are their classmates
• The families of several of the men donated as well as community members

Archibald MacLeish said it best in his moving poem. The poem was written to honor the deaths of men in WWII who had worked with him at the Library of Congress.

The young dead soldiers do not speak

Nevertheless, they are heard in the still houses: who has not heard them? They have a silence that speaks for them at night and when the clock counts.

They say: We were young. We have died. Remember us.

They say: We have done what we could but until it is finished it is not done.

They say: We have given our lives but until it is finished no one can know what our lives gave.

They say: Our deaths are not ours: they are yours, they will mean what you make them.

They say: Whether our lives and our deaths were for peace and a new hope or for nothing we cannot say, it is you who must say this. We leave you our deaths. Give them their meaning.

We were young, they say. We have died; remember us.

by Archibald MacLeish,
1892-1982, American Poet

I will sleep well tonight knowing that these men, who are now a large part of my life, will be remembered for generations to come.

Unexpected Rewards Times Two

In February, I wrote about a young man who brought his wife to visit. Today, his younger brother rang the doorbell to say hi. He also made the journey from Japan to see where he lived for 5 years. He was just 8 when he left America with many good memories of life on Lincoln Ave.
Here he is in 1982, with his older brother, my son John, and Danny. I've always kept this photo in a frame, so it was easy to lay my hands on it today to show him. Aren't they adorable all dressed up for the school Halloween parade?

It was through Facebook that the first of my unexpected rewards arrived earlier in the week. For several years when our children were very young there was a family across the street who became our good friends, and our children's friends.
After leaving the neighborhood, they moved several more times, split up, and moved again. Along the way we lost track of them, and although they were often on my mind I had no idea where they went or how to reconnect.

So, when I discovered the father's brother on Facebook the other evening I made the leap and wrote asking about our friends. By the next morning I'd heard from the father's wife, and by the next day we were all connected again through the marvel of this new social networking medium.


Here are some photos from more than 40 years ago of our children. Do you think I can use Facebook to find some of these other children and their parents? Do you have some special people who have touched your life? Run, don't walk to find them. These wonderful childhood days go by so very fast. Before you know it, these beautiful young children are all grown up. Our eldest grandson is nearly the age that Uncle John was in the photo above. His little sister is just a little older than her father was in the Santa picture. I remember these occasions as if they were just yesterday.

Can't believe it has been 22 year since we last saw Takashi and more than 38 years since we last saw Adam & Debbie. I spent some time tonight taking a wonderful trip down memory lane as I searched the photo albums for pictures.

Life takes unexpected turns. The family whose house is in several of these photos also moved away a very long time ago. We went out to dinner with friends tonight - friends who now live in that house. Sometimes, as I walk in their door I see these scenes in my mind. Of young married couples and their children enjoying life and each others company.

Among my favorite things.

The snow began melting by Sunday afternoon. When it fully disappeared from the grass a welcome surprise was waiting. A surprise that still has the power to take my breath away when I first see it - green grass after a long and cold winter.

Next, sneaking in on silent breezes will be one of my favorite sights. Oh how I wish I had the talent to record its beauty on canvas. Photos just do not do it justice. Words do not do it justice. Yet, it is simple thing that most people never see.

Keep your eyes open folks and you may be surprised at the incredible beauty that unexpectedly appears from out of nowhere. It will sneak up on you soon - so, be on the lookout. You will be amazed at the shades of color you'll see. More than you can count and they change as the light bounces off of them. They are fleeting so watch carefully and you may see one of my favorite things - the many shades of green in an Illinois spring.

Tonight we were blessed with a strong thundershower and sunset that turned the sky an amazing blend of pink, gold and orange and filled it with rainbows - single and double rainbows all around the house. Then poof, they were gone.

A cruel joke?

No, just March in Chicagoland. Nothing like waking up to find the ground covered by inches of wet snow when it should be spring. March came in like a lion and will be leaving the same way.

Always know that winter has left its calling card when before I see it I see that the light from the bathroom skylight is blocked.

How'd they get so smart

I want to know how a two-year-old knows the word "actually" and how to actually use it in a sentence.

Unexpected rewards

Sometimes people come into and out of your life. Losing track of people I care about - people who have enriched my life, and who have played a part in who and what I am today, is my greatest regret.

Some of these people I care about are friends of my children. For a few months, or a few years, they fill our home with laughter and fun. Then they moved on. Or maybe it is was our children who moved on to a new a group of friends or a new boy or girlfriend. Some of these children literally moved away - and sadly, one left this world way too early.

As I think of the cast of characters who accompanied my children, there are some who truly stand out. I have been blessed to continue being part of the lives of some of these special young people, and have watched them grow up and raise families of their own.

Recently, I've spent a few minutes with two of those that I had not seen in many years. In the fall, one of these very special young people rang my doorbell unannounced. Unfortunately, I was not home when his parents did the same thing a few years back. Thank goodness I was home that day. This young man was in fifth grade when he went home to Japan more than 20 years ago. When I opened the door there he was, holding the hand of his beautiful bride. He brought her to America to see where he'd lived as a small boy. Of all the neighbors and friends he could have chosen, he brought her to meet me – amazing. We had a very short and wonderful visit talking about what he remembered as a child. Then they left for their European honeymoon.

Today, another one of these special children who has remained close to my heart despite the fact I have not seen her in over 15 years, came to visit with her partner of seven years, and their beautiful two-year-old son. They live not too far away and hopefully they will come back some time soon.

These are just two examples of many unexpected rewards of opening your house to the friends of your children.

Still not done

On January 1, 2009 I said life would be really good if I could get my office cleaned. Well, significant progress has been made. However. . . it is still not done.

Too many distractions. Some fun - some not.