News & Notes 2023
Dear Family & Friends,
We're still here!
There was some stuff that happened this year that could have meant we were not here (like, at all), but God.
The biggest news this year, and we thank you for praying for us, is Earl's stroke.
TL; DR: All is well and this chapter of our lives is closed.
A little more detail: Shortly before we went to Ann Arbor Michigan for our cousins reunion over Labor Day weekend, Earl lost a lower quadrant of his vision but we didn't realize what it meant and traveled up from NC anyways, enjoying two days of wandering on foot all over and climbing all the stairs to the top of Michigan Stadium for a football game before something minor and unrelated got him talking to our doctor-cousin, who asked the right questions to get a full story and informed us that we were going to the ER. By God's providence, not only did she act as our medical advocate, even the attending physician that afternoon was a former roommate of hers. Earl had to stay a few days in hospital waiting on tests that, were it not a holiday weekend, we could have gotten done all in one day, but we still got back to NC on schedule and with Earl's vision having wholly returned. He had a longish list of doctors and follow ups and OT and PT check ins, but he passed everything without problem including his field of vision test which medically cleared him to drive again by the end of Sept. By mid-Nov we wrapped up what we consider to be the last part of this particular adventure when Earl had PFO closure surgery, an outpatient procedure in which a plastic clamshell is inserted to close a hole between sections of the heart. This hole or flap, which everyone has in utero and which is supposed to close with the vacuum of baby's first breath, stays open to some degree in literally 1 of 4 people and in most young stroke patients is considered part of the reason for the clots getting through to the brain. Our friend Dick phrased it best: Earl's got "piece like a rivet in his heart!"
Lisa went full time at Bookmarks this year (www.bookmarksnc.org), which honestly was not a huge shift in amount of time, but which gave her the massive benefit of a set schedule. The literary arts nonprofit is still going strong, with 15-20 author events every month, both at the bookstore & through our authors in schools program. Tickets are already on sale for Movable Feast (Jan 27 & 28), a 20-author weekend which is Lisa's favorite event of the year (including Festival) because she gets to actually meet and mingle with all the authors, unlike Festival, at which she can't get to the myriad author talks because she is busy at the bookstore tent. If you want book recs, feel free to ask – this is the fun stuff! Endcap pictured is her favorite reads of 2023.
We put our passports to use for the first time in a long time this summer, going on our first cruise. We took the MSC Seascape and sailed out of Miami to their private island in the Bahamas, followed by Jamaica, Grand Cayman (Lisa got to pet stingrays!), and Cozumel Mexico (We loved the Cool-ture tour which included Mayan ruins, coffee, and tequila.) Would we cruise again? Absolutely yes, but on a smaller ship (so peopley!) and ideally not on a holiday week during peak season.
Our small herd of squiggs (our affectionate term for our guinea pigs, all girls) went from four to three this year with Wendy's passing, but Twix, Lilikoi, and TJ are still happily squeaking around our breakfast nook and welcome visitors any time, especially visitors with veggies.
St Paul's Episcopal Church (https://www.stpaulsws.org/) has been our church home for almost exactly a year now, and we're finding places we can serve. Lisa plugged into VBS and is in rotation to teach the upper elementary Sunday school and serve as lector. Less visibly (completely in character), Earl helps on the livestream team and is in rotation to drive the bus to pick up seniors from a local retirement community (this should give hope to longtime Mo Willems readers and pigeons everywhere). He also is enjoying breakfasts and Bible studies with the men's ministry. Similar groups have encouraged him in different ways and times since he used to meet with the Dennytarians, many moons ago.
This time of year, Lisa is singing Handel's Messiah with Winston-Salem Symphony Chorus. Come hear her sing, whether live (concert this Tues Dec 12, 7:30p) or streaming (our Considering Matthew Shepard performance is available to stream for FREE until Jan 29, 2024 (www.wssymphony.org/tv/). She very much misses singing with Heart of the Triad Choral Society and would again if schedule allowed.
On the parents end of things:
Nancy celebrated her 80th birthday in January with a lunch gathering for friends. Thank you also to everyone who sent birthday cards! She enjoys informal lunches with friends, often choosing Hunan Legend as a location. She and Mark are still mostly staying home, including making use of livestream church, but they dine out and go to Toby's Dinner Theatre, do their own shopping, and my mom still drives my dad to all his doctor appointments. She loves snail mail & is getting better with email too.
Henry had a particularly interesting October when a seemingly negligible case of Covid (his first – he managed to avoid it for three full years) became a nasty case of pneumonia that required a multi-week hospital stay and eventually a drainage tube. Once back at Allview Retreat, with extensive PT and the goal of joining the family for Thanksgiving, he's been on an upward trend health-wise and is getting more mobile. He's now been at this assisted living facility almost two years; it's a converted residence and maxes out at eight residents.
Betty is still living independently at Trinity House, a seniors apartment complex. She's very much a warm weather gal so winters are tougher for her. But after a few years of things being mostly shut down, the community room is in full use again, and she joins in on all the crafts, Bible studies, and Bingo. She loves jigsaw puzzles and word finds.
Moving into 2024 we're hoping for a less dramatic year than the last few have been! Use your voice – VOTE whenever the opportunity arises, local and national elections. Out of area peeps, please holler if you're on the East Coast at all; we would love to see you. And, everyone, our annual EOPS open house, moving towards its 16th iteration, is once again on Palm Sunday, which this year is Sunday, March 24. Come visit!
Wishing you health & happiness.
Cheers,
Lisa & Earl
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