The Gatesman Family Blog has moved to http://gatesmanlaw.com/family/
This location for the blog is inactive so please don't post here.
I will shut this location down in the near future.
Administrator.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
The Poet Rumi On Telling One's Story
The Story of My Life
i was ready to tell
the story of my life
but the ripple of tears
and the agony of my heart
wouldn't let me
i began to stutter
saying a word here and there
and all along i felt
as tender as a crystal
ready to be shattered
in this stormy sea
we call life
all the big ships
come apart
board by board
how can i survive
riding a lonely
little boat
with no oars
and no arms
my boat did finally break
by the waves
and i broke free
as i tied myself
to a single board
though the panic is gone
i am now offended
why should i be so helpless
rising with one wave
and falling with the next
i don't know
if i am
nonexistence
while i exist
but i know for sure
when i am
i am not
but
when i am not
then i am
now how can i be
a skeptic
about the
resurrection and
coming to life again
since in this world
i have many times
like my own imagination
died and
been born again
that is why
after a long agonizing life
as a hunter
i finally let go and got
hunted down and became free
Ghazal (Ode) 1419
By Jelaluddin Rumi
Translated by Nader Khalili
posted by Billy
i was ready to tell
the story of my life
but the ripple of tears
and the agony of my heart
wouldn't let me
i began to stutter
saying a word here and there
and all along i felt
as tender as a crystal
ready to be shattered
in this stormy sea
we call life
all the big ships
come apart
board by board
how can i survive
riding a lonely
little boat
with no oars
and no arms
my boat did finally break
by the waves
and i broke free
as i tied myself
to a single board
though the panic is gone
i am now offended
why should i be so helpless
rising with one wave
and falling with the next
i don't know
if i am
nonexistence
while i exist
but i know for sure
when i am
i am not
but
when i am not
then i am
now how can i be
a skeptic
about the
resurrection and
coming to life again
since in this world
i have many times
like my own imagination
died and
been born again
that is why
after a long agonizing life
as a hunter
i finally let go and got
hunted down and became free
Ghazal (Ode) 1419
By Jelaluddin Rumi
Translated by Nader Khalili
posted by Billy
Preserving our History
I have enjoyed reading Judy's, Mom's, and Alanna's Christmas recollections, and I was reminded of the Christmas ham story which I shared. Thinking about those posts prompts me to consider the opportunity that this blog presents to us.
As you undoubtedly know due to my frequent shameless promotion, I have started two web-blogs, one for my business and one for my photographic hobby. In the latter, I share thoughts about my creative process. In this manner, I can memorialize things about myself of which my children might not be aware; and while at this point in their lives they are not that interested in their father's emotional life and personal pursuits, my kids may, as they become older, want to know more about the man who was their father.
For years I would express my inner self in poems and stories and letters and in email correspondence, many of which writings I have lost. It occurs to me that had I retained those items, I would give my children, and their children, and so on, a key to unlock the door of this one aspect of their personal history.
I think that this Gatesman Family blog presents an opportunity for each of us to memorialize our memories, and thereby give each other a glimpse of our own personal emotional life. This is a great opportunity and I am grateful to Judy for proposing the blog.
With that in mind, and knowing that the world wide web is a transient place, I have on my to-do list the task of printing out some of my written materials so that they, like the other writings I have done in the past, are not lost.
I look forward to seeing what people have to contribute to the Gatesman Family web-blog.
- Billy
As you undoubtedly know due to my frequent shameless promotion, I have started two web-blogs, one for my business and one for my photographic hobby. In the latter, I share thoughts about my creative process. In this manner, I can memorialize things about myself of which my children might not be aware; and while at this point in their lives they are not that interested in their father's emotional life and personal pursuits, my kids may, as they become older, want to know more about the man who was their father.
For years I would express my inner self in poems and stories and letters and in email correspondence, many of which writings I have lost. It occurs to me that had I retained those items, I would give my children, and their children, and so on, a key to unlock the door of this one aspect of their personal history.
I think that this Gatesman Family blog presents an opportunity for each of us to memorialize our memories, and thereby give each other a glimpse of our own personal emotional life. This is a great opportunity and I am grateful to Judy for proposing the blog.
With that in mind, and knowing that the world wide web is a transient place, I have on my to-do list the task of printing out some of my written materials so that they, like the other writings I have done in the past, are not lost.
I look forward to seeing what people have to contribute to the Gatesman Family web-blog.
- Billy
Traditions
Alanna's post reminded me of a story of the baked ham tradition. It goes like this. A child asks her mother why she cuts off the ends of the ham every time she bakes it for Christmas dinner.
"Why, dear," says her mother, "you must always do so to bring out the best flavor of the ham."
"How did you learn that?, asks her daughter.
"Why, my mother taught me."
At Christmas dinner that evening the girl asks her grandmother, "Grand-mama, why do you cut off the ends of the ham before you cook it?"
Grand-mama replies, "Of course you must do that, it is the only way to cook a ham. My mother taught me this."
The next morning, in the nursing home, the girl asked her great-grandmother: Great Grand-mama, why do you cut off the ends of the ham before you cook it?"
After a long silence while Great Grand-mama gathered her strength to speak, she looked her granddaughter in the eye and replied: "Oh you silly girl, I did that because my roasting pan was too small to fit the whole ham."
Imagine if Alanna's parent's apartment had a short ceiling. Then we would be talking about the star that had no point at the top. I wonder what stories would be passed on from generation to generation in that event.
-- Billy
"Why, dear," says her mother, "you must always do so to bring out the best flavor of the ham."
"How did you learn that?, asks her daughter.
"Why, my mother taught me."
At Christmas dinner that evening the girl asks her grandmother, "Grand-mama, why do you cut off the ends of the ham before you cook it?"
Grand-mama replies, "Of course you must do that, it is the only way to cook a ham. My mother taught me this."
The next morning, in the nursing home, the girl asked her great-grandmother: Great Grand-mama, why do you cut off the ends of the ham before you cook it?"
After a long silence while Great Grand-mama gathered her strength to speak, she looked her granddaughter in the eye and replied: "Oh you silly girl, I did that because my roasting pan was too small to fit the whole ham."
Imagine if Alanna's parent's apartment had a short ceiling. Then we would be talking about the star that had no point at the top. I wonder what stories would be passed on from generation to generation in that event.
-- Billy
Saturday, November 17, 2007
My Christmas Tree Star
I loved reading all the Christmas stories/memories on the blog today, so I thought I'd share the story of the origin of one of my own family Christmas traditions....If any of you were at the house last year around Christmas, you may have noticed the star on our tree (it's hard to miss - made of aluminum foil...) It all started in 1965 - when my parents put up their first Christmas tree together in their tiny 3rd floor apt in Oak Park. After stringing all the lights and hanging all the ornaments, they realized they didn't have a star. They also didn't have much money. So, my dad took a piece of cardboard, cut out a star shape, covered it in foil, and taped a cardboard toilet-paper roll on the back so that it would fit nicely over the top of the tree....and a McKenna tree-topping tradtion was born. Over the years, as the old stars suffered torn or ripped foil, new cardboard/foil/toilet paper roll stars were made to replace the old ones and keep the tradition going. As my siblings and I got older, moved out, and decorated our own Christmas trees, we carried on the tradition of the foil star. Luckily, Tim has a strong appreciation for tradition and happily (albeit with a giggle and a shake of the head) lets me put my homemade foil star on top of our own Christmas tree....
-Alanna
-Alanna
Mom's Recollections
Mom's post was very moving to me sparking my recollections of the events she describes. I have visions of Pepsi in dixie cups from one household and the smell of the fire from another dancing in my head.
- Billy
- Billy
Friday, November 16, 2007
From Mrs. Claus herself!
Christmas is coming and even if I don't wake up to mixed cries of "Mom,
get up, Santa came!" I'll never forget the wonderful joy of seeing the
excitment in my kids' eyes as they kept looking at the tree, while they patiently
waited to open their presents, while they ate their Christmas breakfast, which
was my big tradition. And then the rush to open packages after breakfast was
done.....
Especially Arthur Avenue brings back such wonderful memories, not only
of Grandma and Grandpa Gatesman's Christmases, but Grandma and Grandpa
Welzien's house, where something always seemed to happen to the plumbing at
holiday time, whether it as frozen pipes, leaking sinks, broken furnace.....but,
always, even if the night before, it would seem that would be the only house in
town that Christmas wouldn't be celebrated for one reason or another, a great
Christmas with food, fun and carols would always magically be there, complete
with trees in every room, (even if Santa's helper, Uncle Mike had stayed up
all night to put them up and they might still be up at Easter). There would be
Christmas scarves on every conceivable surface, dolls under every tree
(each with it's own theme), presents, that sometimes had to be wrapped that day in the
bedroom next to the kitchen....
I remember the Christmas Judy and I wore matching "hippie skirts", the
year Billy got a subscription to "Playboy" from Grandma Jake (because he had
convinced her of the great "literary value" the stories and editorials
it contained (we probably knew that year, he would be a lawyer!) Jeff's serious
face as he opened his presents, only to break out into his beautiful smile when he
saw what was in the package, no matter what it was.
The glee in Pa's eyes the whole month of December, not only as he
picked out all the toys (or made them) for his grandchildren, but the fun he had
with them before they were wrapped and put under the tree. The pride of
having his grandchildren with him at Christmas. Grandma's Chicken and the use of
her "china" which then became "Granny's chicken from the Chinese
restaurant, but still served on china. Aunt Shirley and I washing dishes,
The fun of Jeff and Judy's first production of the "Nativity Story" and
"Dago Joe", the landlord and the two homeless people (Tim and Jim) it wasn't
politically correct then, but much better than some of the "christmas
movies" we are "treated to" nowadays.
The wonderful Christmas when Judy played Santa to the twins in their
cribs and scared them to tears, (our fault, we never should have kept the
face mask up in the crawl of the garage)
The beautiful "Victorian" tree with the handmade ornaments that Judy
and Desi made while Dad and I were away, and the sight of Desi, dressed in
ballet clothes, looking like a part of the "Nutcracker" standing next to the
tree.
The year Donna spent Christmas with us and I took her to Chris' beauty
shop for a haircut and she had hot chocolate (for I think the first time,
and candy cane stirrers), and she looked like a Christmas doll, (I think she may
have been about three).
The years, we tied the tree to the curtain rods in the living room, the
year we put the tree in the play pen ( simply because there were babies and
toddlers around all month of December and "we had to have glass
ornaments". I think I was a little freaky about Christmas (you think?????)
Well, I about filled the blog, more later. I LOVE CHRISTMAS TIME!
MOM
get up, Santa came!" I'll never forget the wonderful joy of seeing the
excitment in my kids' eyes as they kept looking at the tree, while they patiently
waited to open their presents, while they ate their Christmas breakfast, which
was my big tradition. And then the rush to open packages after breakfast was
done.....
Especially Arthur Avenue brings back such wonderful memories, not only
of Grandma and Grandpa Gatesman's Christmases, but Grandma and Grandpa
Welzien's house, where something always seemed to happen to the plumbing at
holiday time, whether it as frozen pipes, leaking sinks, broken furnace.....but,
always, even if the night before, it would seem that would be the only house in
town that Christmas wouldn't be celebrated for one reason or another, a great
Christmas with food, fun and carols would always magically be there, complete
with trees in every room, (even if Santa's helper, Uncle Mike had stayed up
all night to put them up and they might still be up at Easter). There would be
Christmas scarves on every conceivable surface, dolls under every tree
(each with it's own theme), presents, that sometimes had to be wrapped that day in the
bedroom next to the kitchen....
I remember the Christmas Judy and I wore matching "hippie skirts", the
year Billy got a subscription to "Playboy" from Grandma Jake (because he had
convinced her of the great "literary value" the stories and editorials
it contained (we probably knew that year, he would be a lawyer!) Jeff's serious
face as he opened his presents, only to break out into his beautiful smile when he
saw what was in the package, no matter what it was.
The glee in Pa's eyes the whole month of December, not only as he
picked out all the toys (or made them) for his grandchildren, but the fun he had
with them before they were wrapped and put under the tree. The pride of
having his grandchildren with him at Christmas. Grandma's Chicken and the use of
her "china" which then became "Granny's chicken from the Chinese
restaurant, but still served on china. Aunt Shirley and I washing dishes,
The fun of Jeff and Judy's first production of the "Nativity Story" and
"Dago Joe", the landlord and the two homeless people (Tim and Jim) it wasn't
politically correct then, but much better than some of the "christmas
movies" we are "treated to" nowadays.
The wonderful Christmas when Judy played Santa to the twins in their
cribs and scared them to tears, (our fault, we never should have kept the
face mask up in the crawl of the garage)
The beautiful "Victorian" tree with the handmade ornaments that Judy
and Desi made while Dad and I were away, and the sight of Desi, dressed in
ballet clothes, looking like a part of the "Nutcracker" standing next to the
tree.
The year Donna spent Christmas with us and I took her to Chris' beauty
shop for a haircut and she had hot chocolate (for I think the first time,
and candy cane stirrers), and she looked like a Christmas doll, (I think she may
have been about three).
The years, we tied the tree to the curtain rods in the living room, the
year we put the tree in the play pen ( simply because there were babies and
toddlers around all month of December and "we had to have glass
ornaments". I think I was a little freaky about Christmas (you think?????)
Well, I about filled the blog, more later. I LOVE CHRISTMAS TIME!
MOM
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
