Can you believe we all made it to 2000? We've finally gotten used to the idea of having lived through the period of Orwell's "1984" and now we're ready to enter the year of Arthur C. Clark's "2001, a Space Odyssey." At least the future hasn't turned out as envisioned.
Without a doubt our biggest news this year is Marisa's impending change in marital status. Yes, she is engaged, to one happy and lucky fellow, name of Arthur Reyes. We already love Arthur who is a modern guy with old-fashioned values. He came to our house and asked for Marisa's hand in marriage! We were sworn to secrecy, as his plan was to pop the question on their Australian vacation. He asked Marisa to take his photo in front of the Sydney Opera House, and when she captured him in her viewfinder, she could see the twinkle of the beautiful diamond engagement ring he had purchased for her and stealthily brought along. How romantic is that? The wedding is set for August 18, 2001, at the Stanford Memorial Church. It will be a joyous and splendid event and one that will keep us busy planning well into 2001!
Emily still enjoys living near the beach in San Diego and has now identified a career choice, public relations and communications. After checking out Boston, she decided to continue pursuing a degree in Southern California. This past year she has enjoyed school, waitressing, and working as a nanny for a three-year-old named Olivia and her six-year old sister Eva. The two are fond of Emily, and she spends a good deal of time with them. Emily's role in Marisa's wedding is bridesmaid and head flower arranger, taking advantage of her creative flair in the floral arts.
As was true in 1999 (Hawaii), we spent our vacation on U.S. soil. In June we spent almost two glorious weeks in a national park never visited by me and last visited by Philip when he was 13: Yellowstone National Park. As much as we love Yosemite, Yellowstone has two additional drawing cards in addition to the tremendous scenic beauty they share: abundant wildlife and hydrothermal activity. We arranged our life around the hours that we were told animals most commonly can be found: the early hours of the morning and the evening hours. We were amply rewarded for our efforts, as our list of animal sightings will attest: moose, coyotes, a wolf, a brown bear, a grizzly bear, and prong-horned antelope, along with the usual elk and bison. On the same trip we were able to explore Grand Tetons National Park and Jackson, Wyoming; visit Penny Boyd (an old Peace Corps friend) in Bozeman, Montana; and visit Nancy and Duane Furukawa (Lynn's cousin Nancy Santo) in Salt Lake City.
And what else have Lynn and Phil been up to, to pass the time? Lynn spent a lot of energy helping a neighbor through a painful divorce. She has also been doing a lot of career soul searching, but so far is still with the same old job. One of its perks is the opportunity to travel. Lynn's favorite getaway this year was Paris in September for three glorious days (after a business trip to Holland). Paris in the fall was a splendid time to visit, with fewer crowds and perfect weather. Rick and Isabelle Bohon (Isabelle used to live across the street) are perfect hosts wherever in the world we visit them. "Hotel Bohon " is an institution in our family. Lynn enjoyed both old and new sights in Paris--Giverny was a new sight and truly lived up to her expectation of Monet's garden and paintings.
Philip spends a lot of time studying his family history. In fact, part of the reason we stopped in Salt Lake on our vacation was for him to conduct research on his ancestral roots. He also finds time go running in the woods several times a week or bike up the hills above Palo Alto. Another project has been the construction of a personal web page, although so far it is pretty meager. Eventually we hope to post Marisa's wedding pictures. In case there is anything there by the time you read this, the address is: www.stanford.edu/people/philr [if you are reading this, you already found it]
We have also spent energy together planning and overseeing the big house project for this year--decking the backyard and resurfacing an old fishpond. The little bit of yard that is left will host bamboo and Japanese maple.
We hope that this biannual epistle finds you hale and hearty. For the most part, we find ourselves healthy. May 2001 bring you peace and happiness. Marisa's August wedding will bring us much happiness but probably not a lot of peace, at least not until September.
With love,
Lynn, Philip, Marisa, and Emily