Gabby’s Lego popcorn stand

Gabby made a Lego popcorn stand and presented it to the Vassar Theater; the owner of the theater loved it so much, he displayed it at the actual popcorn stand.

While taking Gabby to Vassar Theater to see a movie on April 14, I saw her Lego popcorn stand for the first time and was very impressed by her creative and realistic design.

When the owner of the theater spotted us and knew I am the grandpa; he immediately said “I got to get my camera!”  Talk about the celebrity in a theater! He said he really appreciates the design and the Lego work, as do all the theater goers.

The art and skill of fetching water from a well

The house in which I grew up in Xia-Tan (下潭) had no running water, so we had to fetch water either from the water pump or the well next to it, located in the elemental school (the only school in the village) across the road.

I reminisced about my childhood story with the family during the holidays in Michigan.  When talking about fetching the water from well, I vividly remember the trick of twisting or jerking the bucket when it reached the bottom of the well, so that it could turn and sink into water; I was very proud of the skill.

While reading Lin-Yutang’s “From Pagan to Christian”, I came across this passage, in which he obviously had the same experience and even called this skill an “art”.

“We were a family of six brothers and two sisters, and we boys used to take turns drawing water from the family well.  There was fun in learning the art of swinging the bucket when it reached the bottom of the well so that it would overturn and catch the water.”

I recall there was a water pump in front of Janice’s dorm in the Harvard Yard.  It brought back the memory of my childhood when I first saw it.  My left thumb was once partially crushed operating the pump.  The water pump was kept it in the Yard for “historical” reason; like Lin Yutang, I must have lived through the history.

Many years ago on our visit to Taiwan, I did bring Jo and Sean to see that house in the village; I regret not to bring them to demonstrate the skill/art of fetching water from the well.

We moved from Xia-Tan (下潭) to Po-Tzu (朴子) half way through my fifth grade, I wrote a story about this in 2007.

http://doctorjytsai.blogspot.com/2007/04/comparing-with-young-abe-lincoln.html

Holiday greetings: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 1980 and 2016

A very nice patient of mine gave me the copy of a whole page write up of our family in the Waynesburg newspaper, Democrat Messenger that was published on December 24, 1980.  She kept it all these 36 years and gave me the best Christmas gift last week.

The fond memory of 36 years ago calls for a re-enactment.  Joy is the photographer for the version of 2016 Christmas celebration.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 1980 & 2016.

A birthday party: When East meets West and the origin of the "Eating Club"

I went to my birthday party anticipating to see the loyal members of our “Eating Club”.  Katy said buffet was chosen as some young couples with kids were also invited.  Little did I know many of our good friends in Pittsburgh were also there.  The “conspirators” of this unexpected event were Janet and Katy.

Katy said this would give our American friends chance to meet our friends in Pittsburgh.  When we visited Pittsburgh we hanged out with these people.  If there were anything good about me, credit is theirs. Were there anything bad about me, now you know where and how I got polluted.

In order to explain the origin of our “Eating Club” I have to take you back to 40 years ago when we had a good fortune to become the neighbor of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee, parents of Janet.  Dr. Greenlee was a Mayo Clinic trained surgeon.  Mayo brothers were still practicing when Dr. Greenlee went there after graduating from University of Pittsburgh Medical School in 1922.

While not practicing medicine and surgery, Dr. Greenlee worked in his farm; he was a seasoned and experienced gardener.  Katy was not born with a green thumb; she worked with Dr. Greenlee many decades before I picked up gardening.  When Dr. Greenlee passed away at age of 102, all my three daughters said regardless how great and how respectable Dr. Greenlee was as a surgeon, he will always be their loving Grandpa Greenlee; they most remember learning patience and steady work in the garden with him as well as the simple pleasures of watching baseball and football with him on TV.

 

I am hoping you will enjoy looking at our photo (below) of being the poster boys of American Lung Association.
 

 

This plaque of “An old gardener lives here with his American beauty” used to hang in the kitchen of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee, with the passing of both of them; it is now hanging in our kitchen.  We earned the honor and privilege as we’re the most qualified couple to receive it:  there is an old gardener in our household and after living more than 40 years in America, Katy can unabashedly claim to be an American beauty.

After taking care of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee for so many years, Patty and Joy have practically become family.  We managed to meet and have a dinner together rotating among several restaurants in Washington and Waynesburg areas every so often after the passing of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee and John Gapen (Irene's husband); and Eating Club gradually came into being.  The loyal members of the Eating Club include Janet, Kay, Patty, Ron, Joy, Irene, Katy and me.  There would be some honor guests on special occasions; out-of-town family came back for a visit usually called for a special “meeting” (meet and eat and sharing good time--invoking fond memory of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee and John Gapen, providng healing effect for those left behind--caretakers and families).

Dr. Greenlee was our daughters’ American grandpa and Mrs. Greenlee was our American mother, thus Janet is our American sister, so are Patty and Joy.  Dr. Greenlee was always the “Doc”, a title I am now privileged to assume; just look at my birthday cake: “Happy Birthday, Doc”.


The simple food was served, hopefully some were delicious, but many marveled at the cake which was superb. Both Irene and I got a cake; Janet knows where to get the best cake in Western Pennsylvania and which one is my favorite one.
 

Janet was disappointed when she found out which cake was my favorite, saying “Darn! That was the most expensive one!”  I am a simple man; my taste is simple; I enjoy the best and I am worth it.

Janet took good care of us or even spoiled us; the list of what she has done for us is as long as your arm; she even took us out to the ball game at PNC Park.

There are “King and Queen” (Birthday Boy and Birthday Girl) in the birthday party; Irene and I have birthday very close in August; we routinely celebrate birthday together and this year is no exception.  Irene is celebrating her 90^th birthday and mine 70^th.

Irene is also our neighbor and lifelong friend of Dr. and Mrs. Greenlee.  Her husband, John, before his passing, was also an avid and skilled gardener, with whom Katy learned all the tricks and skill of the gardening.

Let this post serve as a Thank You note to everyone who took time to celebrate my and Irene’s birthday.  When the East meets the West to celebrate our birthday; we must have the best of the two worlds.  Thank you, Janet (my American sister) and Katy (my American beauty) from the bottom of the heart of an old gardener.  Turning 70, feeling older; fortunately many friends remind me of 人生七十才開始 (life just begins at age of 70).

 

Congratulations to a New York City marathon runner

Congratulations to Janice who was one of the 50,881 TCS New York City Marathon runners from all over the world today.  She has run many half marathons in many cities; this is her second NYC marathon and finished it in flying colors.

Joy was the cheerleader-in-chief and did a fantastic job; we monitored online and cheered from the distance.  The two photos were taken before the marathon running.

My grandmother listening to the phonograph

My cousin, 英毅, posted this photo of our grandmother in Facebook.  She was listening to the phonograph so absorbing that she was oblivious to her picture being taken.  It was said she was listening to 梁山伯與祝英台 (A Chinese folklore, a love story).  She was then in her late 70s.

I attended middle/high school in Chia Yi.  I vividly recall that whenever I was home to Po-Tzu, I would ask my mom where 阿嬤 (grandmother) was as she rotated living with her several sons in Po-Tzu; my first order of business would be going to see my 阿嬤 wherever she was.

My beloved uncle and aunt

I came to the States in 1971 and when I went back to Taiwan to “claim my bride” in December 1973.  I chatted with my 3^rd uncle (my mom’s younger brother, who was a physician) on many occasions during my 2-week stay.  He asked me about every aspect of medical care in the States with the topics large and small, ranging from the infrastructure of the healthcare delivery system to the detailed technique of the central venous catheter placement via subclavian vein.

Here is the photo of my 3^rd uncle and my aunt, posted by his son, my cousin.  It comes with a very beautiful and moving Chinese writing; I translated it with reluctance as the beauty of the language would be lost.

“My parents were most happy when I took the job as the chair of ophthalmology department of the hospital in my hometown in 1986.  After graduating from elementary school, I spent the next 20 years studying or working away from home; I hardly had any time seeing or staying with mom and dad for any interval of significance.  The first lunar New Year after coming back to my home town, I took a picture of my parents in their backyard.  Dad and mom put on their best dress, smiling on their face, surrounded by the crimson red poinsettia and the green flower pots and bonsai.  The picture captured the most beautiful memory of their deep and unquenchable love. People and things are now gone with the wind; never more! Dad and mom had been home in heaven; the old home had since changed hand.  Looking back, seeing the old photo and thinking about the loved ones, my heart is heavy with mixed emotions; life is ephemeral; here today and gone tomorrow.  Live for today and seize the moment; lives one’s fleeting life to the fullest with no regret.”

鶼鰈情深

1986年我奉調回老家擔任署立醫院眼科主任一職，最高興的就是爸爸媽媽了。自國小畢業後，二十年間，幾乎都在外鄉求學就業，難得回家與爸媽相處。回鄉後第一次過年，就在自家後院為爸媽留影紀念。爸媽盛裝上場，面露微笑，四週聖誕花紅、綠色盆景圍繞，為他倆鶼鰈情深留下最美麗的回憶。如今人事已非，爸媽魂歸天國，老家也已易主。回首往事，睹照思人，百感交集，倍覺滄桑。只有把握當下，於此一無常人生，瀟灑走一回

Grandma’s House

The scanned copies (4 pages) are the Grandma’s House that Lulu wrote with her talent and her heart.  It is amazing that this comes from a 9-year-old girl; I cannot help but put it on my blog.

This is not just a house, this is the ‘hub of the universe’ for so many people including our family, like Lulu wrote, “Everyone should have a special place like this.”  Lulu felt “very happy and lucky” when she came to the House, but felt sorry that “it takes seven hours to get there”; we’re even luckier than she is as we live only “a brick’s throw away”.

When the “empty nest” fell upon us some years ago, some friends wondered whether we might consider downsizing out house; we would never do it; how could one move away from “the best place ever” (how can one not agree with Lulu?) we ever know.

I have to admit that I read “Grandma’s House” with mixed emotion; it reminds me why we feel happy and lucky in the House, but with the passing of the “Grandma”, reading it elicits sad thought from a heavy heart because of the uncertainty of the fate of the House.  I am sure the ‘clan’ will find a way to keep the kinship and getting together of the large and extended family going. 

I love “Grandma’s House (the House and the writing). “Everyone should have a special place like this.  I love my grandma’s house.”

(Lulu must have a very good teacher, who wrote, “I want to go there now!” who wouldn’t?)

My personal remembrance of Mrs. Audrey Greenlee: In celebration of a long and great life

It has been a month since the passing of Mrs. Audrey Greenlee; I am still trying to adjust my daily routine of life.  After leaving the clinic I would stop by at hospital, if needed, then stopping by to see her, once every so often, before going home.  Gone are those days, nevermore.

It hasn’t escaped my observation that the life Mrs. Greenlee spent in her last years was an envy of all.  She was constantly surrounded by loved ones and care takers; here or from out of state.  Patty, one of her loving caretakers, always tried to keep me informed about the busy schedule of her loved ones coming home.

Over the years I always tried to ask various subspecialty doctors to see her when the need of her care was beyond the scope of my practice.  But that was not always the case; on certain occasions I did it lest my emotional attachment would cloud my medical judgment as if I were treating my own immediate family member, then I realize that she was indeed the grandmother of my three daughters and my and Katy’s American mother!

Mrs. Greenlee’s short term memory deserted her in her last years, but she maintained her kindness to people, her humor and her fortitude to pain and suffering to the end; the examples abound.  Shortly before I left for Boston; about 10 days before her passing.  I stopped by to see her while she was sitting in front of TV; I bent down to see her feet, she asked me what I was doing, I said I was examining her feet.  Then I stood up with a stethoscope in my hand saying “Let me take a listen,” she quipped, “listening to my feet?” She quickly took advantage of my not saying thing properly—I should have said “Let me take a listen to your heart and lungs.”

In addition to her large and extended family, she and Dr. Greenlee also raised or welcomed foster children, foreign exchange students and medical residents into their home.   I recall one of her chest x rays reported her heart was a bit enlarged; that was an understatement; her heart was as large as the sea is deep.   She once had mild congestive heart failure; nothing could be further from the truth; a heart like hers could never fail.

Even though we have had a good fortune to be Greenlee’s neighbor for nearly 40 years.  We still do not know all their good deeds, some of which have become legends.  Mrs. Greenlee was very active in community in her younger or even not-so-young days, volunteering her time at Greene County Memorial Hospital, Eva K. Bowlby Library and the Waynesburg Senior Citizen Center, delivering Meals on Wheels for many years.

Abigail Adams’ last words were, “Do not grieve, my friend, my dearest friend.  I am ready to go,” she then turned to and comforted John Adams, “and John it will not be long.”  I do not recall that were Dr. Greenlee’s last words, but there is no doubt that he believed, as confident as Abigail was, they will be together again and they are now.  Dr. Greenlee was, is and will always be the Number One of Audrey Fan Club.

The unveiling ceremony of my grandfather’s statue on December 20, 1964

This photo was posted by my cousin at Facebook.  It was taken on December 20, 1964 for the occasion of unveiling the statue of my maternal grandfather, who was the founder of Kao-Ming Abbey (高明寺).  I somehow missed this great event.  I later wrote a post of “The story of my grandfather” in this blog.

http://doctorjytsai.blogspot.com/2011/04/story-of-my-grandfather.html

此曾在
先祖父陳添貴居士銅像，48年前的今日，於故鄉嘉義縣朴子鎮(現已改為“市”)高明寺舉行揭幕典禮，此乃家族的一大盛事，大家均盛裝赴會，並合影留念。隨著光陰流轉，父執輩均已次第凋零。睹物思人，不勝唏噓。 — with 陳美華, 陳春妍, 陳芳妍, 陳美珍, 陳瑞珠, 吳惠娟, 陳兒香, 陳郁惠, 陳豐美, 吳明毅, 陳煜焜, 吳弘毅, 陳沾洽, 陳德洽, 陳英明, 張學仁, 蔡哲仁, 吳清毅, 陳英毅 and 張學義

(The following is my comment at a FB post.)

48 年前我應該還在台灣, 但是相片裡也找不到我, 錯過了這麼大的家族盛事, 真是遺憾. 幸好上次 (March 2009) 回台時有跟外祖父銅像合照. 後來寫了一篇 "The story of my grandfather"; it ends with “I may be writing this post with pride and delight, and yet my heart is heavy and sad, reminiscing things and people so dear to me, far away, long ago, nevermore!”.  Yes,  睹物思人，不勝唏噓。

A boy is boy; a girl is girl

These photos show a boy is boy; a girl is girl!