Yes, the month of Dad-birthdays. Karina and I have been waiting for the Star Trek movie to open up here in Merida, but it looks like we're going to have to wait until we get back to Cancun to see it. We've also been planning to buy the whole TNG series and tackle it together. Since I'm a bit more of a Star Trek geek than she is, I've been yarning on about the different quadrants and species etc. (drawing greatly on what I remember from the Star Trek Encyclopedia we bought together). It has reminded me of you a lot, which leads me to just a few of the things that having you for my father make me feel grateful for.
You were probably the first person to ever teach me how to ruin a movie for myself. I know that doesn't sound like praise, so let me explain. Learning how to "ruin things for yourself (and others)" is pretty much what I've been going to school to learn how to do for a career. English people (I mean students of English) are probably the best bubble-bursters in the world. Only they call it criticism, critical theory, and about a billion other names.
You taught me how to think critically from a young age, a skill that not only has served my life in practical ways, but has also become my favorite hobby and what I hope to do professionally. Criticizing the world around us is the first step towards making the world less crappy, another one of my interests. The more I think about it, the more I realize that you taught me critical skills outside of movies and t.v. as well. But even dissecting the plot of Rambo or whatever when I was young started me thinking about narrative, structure, composition, etc. These topics make most people want to put a gun in their mouths, but for me, they're where it's at.
Also, you taught me the importance of being passionate and personally invested in a research project by your example. Your enthusiasm for scripture and gospel research, along with your prodding for us kids to follow suit, gave me a head start towards a certain kind of literacy that would be hard to do without in school. I've written about this more than once the last few semesters. Without my scripture background, a class like Early American Literature would have been a semester-long dental exam instead of the fascinating course it turned out to be. This willingness to investigate things on your own is closely related to the importance of knowledge, any kind of knowledge, that your example highlights. Some people call it trivia, but having random bits of stuff in one's head proves useful almost constantly.
Ok, blah blah blah. Point is that I love you (along with Mom and the rest of the family), and I'm aware of and grateful for many of the ways that you have contributed to my identity and happiness in adulthood. Thank you for being a wonderful father in the face of so many obstacles and hardships over the years. And thank you for taking care of Mom, especially since her Geranamo/tumbling-performance-gone-wrong down the stairs (is it still too early to joke about this?). Get yourselves well so Karina and I can take you to do some crazy, less strenuous spelunking/adventuring/exploring state-side in the near future. Happy Birthday Pop!
Love, Justin
(you too David :) )
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Happy Birthday Jerry!!
It's been so great knowing you over the past 3-4 years. I've really enjoyed the times we've had playing volleyball, and boardgames. I'll never forget the time you shared your awesome Star Wars figurine collection with us. I still wouldn't mind watching all of the movies (Star Wars and/or Star Trek) from start to finish with you and Bryce. As I've embraced my geekiness, I've realized more and more that we have a lot in common (that's a good thing :] ). I hope you have an excellent Birthday, sorry we aren't there to visit with you.
Love,
Karina
Also Happy Birthday David! I just watched the video of you finding out that you and Wendi are having a baby girl. Congrats to both of you!
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GEMINIS UNITE! (combine like some sort of Power Ranger contraption - You too Bryce, Kelsi, Randy and Grandma Linn!)
3 comments:
We'll unite behind Karina! Yes, Geminis are good. Or is Gemini already a plural? Would one twin be a Geminae?
nice letter
By the way, to what length does this amazing trip extend? It seems like wonderfully long adventures-in-paradise from those of us stuck at home.
gaelyn
We come home on Saturday the 30th :( When Karina and I first discussed the possibility of going on vacation this summer the idea escalated (within the hour) to vacation out of the country, then to Mexico, then to the Gulf area of Mexico, then to two weeks, then, why not a month etc., and we just rolled with it.
We've been talking this week about how glad we are that we made it a long trip. The period of acute shock of being somewhere so different didn't wear off until into the third week or so. We're not quite there yet, but I think that we're getting the first little tastes now of what it would be like to consider this place home. We've done some sniffing around and feel confident now that it wouldn't be terribly difficult to transplant here or a place like this. Knowing the language helps.
It's been lovely, but it's time to come home. Probably the most interesting thing I've learned down here, personally, are which things are the same, and which of those similarities between here and home are the ones that get under my skin. I thought at first of course that this WAS paradise, but with a little time I've gotten a slightly bigger picture. I think a lot of things in the culture, lifestyle and government of the people here are up my alley (and a step in the right direction when compared to home, from my perspective), but in the end the big problems are the same for me. They manifest a little differently, but you still have a minority of people with the majority of the guns, money, and power, and the majority of the people with the minority of the guns (of lesser quality), money, and very little power. I'm glad I had the time to discover again, and in a different way, that those are my major beefs. Lol, the way I make all that sound makes me want to vomit all over my own idealism sometimes.
Anyway, at least the people of Yucatan get nice weather (as I see it), and at least Karina and I get to snowboard where we call home.
-J
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