Family
We are healthy only to the extent that our ideas are humane. Kilgore Trout -Kurt Vonnegut, Breakfast of Champions, Ch 1.
We always imagine eternity as something beyond our conception, something vast, vast! But why must it be vast? -Fyodor Dostoevsky
Christmas 1958 - Steve, Tom, and Grandpa Wiebe. Family.
So Long, Steve
My brother Steve, Stephen Alton Wiebe, died recently of heart failure; he was 66 years old. Steve's wife, family and friends were around him at the end of his life, a life whose last years were painful and difficult. Steve, my older brother, is no longer suffering. I will miss him.
Family.
At play with Uncle Ron
Ron Wiebe, my Uncle Ron, my Dad's youngest brother, died recently. I will miss him. He was a good man, a man of heart, a man who lived his life with passion, and shared his joie de vivre with everyone around him.
Oregon Scribbler.
Milestones of our courtship
While doing some spring cleaning, Cindy came across some discrete milestones of our courtship, perhaps a short and selective history of Cindy’s path to my heart, assisted by her pal Snoopy.
Oregon Scribbler.
Celia’s Lullaby
My mother, Celia Wiebe, has loved music for as long as I can remember. She often played music on the record player when we were growing up, mostly classical, and encouraged her children from their earliest ages to listen and to participate. She also sang around the house, and with her children; sometimes she sang solos or duets with my father in church. Her soprano voice sounded wonderful to me when she sang.
Oregon Scribbler.
Home brewing: Yeast is your friend
After many years on home brew hiatus, my son Jon and I have begun brewing beer together, now that he has finished his arduous post-grad studies and has time for something other than work. We have managed to brew two batches of beer so far, and a third is nearly finished conditioning. We have made all of the mistakes one can make starting out, but thankfully all of the beers are drinkable.
Family.
Glenn Jaeger, in Memoriam
Glenn Jaeger passed away recently. Glenn's father Nick married my grandmother Edna Wiebe after my grandfather died. Getting to know Glenn and Carol was one of the blessings of that union for me. We moved into the neighboring school district just before my senior year in high school, and Glenn and Carol took me in that last year to allow me to finish high school where I had started. They treated me so kindly, much more kindly than an obnoxious teenager might expect.Das echte Lied der Alpenkräuter
When I was growing up, my father taught us a little ditty from his Mennonite boyhood:
Dar war ein Mann in Tode Loch,Und kein er sahe Mann,Und im dem letzen Stunden,Stunden,Hat er das Alpenkreuter gefunden.It was a charming little tune. Eventually, my curiosity was aroused regarding its meaning, so ...
Family.
Opa welcomes Maiella!
Cindy and I are dancing with joy - our first grandchild has joined our family! Maiella Skye Estaris Wiebe, whose parents, Jenn and Benn, are starting their journey as parents. May they have as rich an experience as we have had! She was born at 3:21am on June 15th, 2013, weighed in at 6lb 14oz, was 20in long and is our sweetheart. Woo Hoo!
Attrib: Ruth Moreau, Family.
Doctor Dad . . . Irreplaceable
My Dad, Tony Wiebe, retired as a family physician nearly twelve years ago, in 2000. He was my personal physician for most of his practice, as well as my family.During the course of his forty two years of practice, he had always taken care of family members, immediate and extended, with the greatest generosity. Dad was always available for family, 24 x 7, and family members were never charged for his services. He would get up at any time of the night and go to someone's house or meet them at his clinic when he received a call for help, whether from within his household or via the telephone.
Family.
Grandbabies!
The birth of a new child in the family never gets old, even if it occurs a thousand miles away! My niece Janna and her husband Jerome recently had a baby, Deacan. Not long before Deacan was born, Matt and Katie Stewart had a baby, Miriam, the first grandchild of my old friends Tim and Laurie. And penultimate addition to the Wiebe family, Sophia, remains a source of regular, albeit once removed delight, thanks to Facebook.Oregon loves New York: memories of 9/11
My wife Cindy and I awoke early on September 11, 2001 in Portland, Oregon. As I was preparing for work, she called me to the television, which had the smoking image of the first of the burning World Trade towers. We both stared in disbelief, and watched numbly as that terrible day unfolded, as the second tower was struck, as people began to jump from the buildings, after which one building and then the other crashed to the ground, so rapidly as to seem completely unreal. We watched as the Pentagon was struck, and followed the tense and fragmentary reporting as planes were grounded, fighter planes were scrambled, and frantic searches were being conducted to account for all of the airplanes in the air, culminating in the crash of flight 93 in a Pennsylvania field. We wondered what could possibly motivate someone to cause such horrific damage, to deliberately destroy so many innocent lives.Chess tournament etiquette: Performance art?
Several chess writers have mentioned a German 'book' entitled Instructions to Spectators at Chess Tournaments, which was comprised of three hundred blank pages followed by the phrase "Shut Up!"
This piece of performance art (the performer is the reader of the book) brought to mind an experience my son Jon and I shared years ago at a chess tournament. Jon had an early interest in chess, and starting in the fourth grade, played in multiple chess tournaments, the only member of the Wiebe family to compete in chess, even if only for a few years. I took him to his last tournament, and joined the ranks of fussy parents watching their children anxiously from the sidelines. In his second game, after perhaps ten moves, I noticed that Jon had just placed his opponent in a discovered check situation. I was excited for him, because discovered check can be a lethal tactic . . .
Resident physicians: Too tired, or what?
Residents, or resident physicians, are young physicians who are completing their training by working, under the supervision of other physicians, very long hours for several years in a teaching hospital. Concern is routinely raised regarding being treated by physicians who are still learning, and might be exhausted and perhaps making poor judgments. Two current medical residents debate the issue.
Louise Watson – In Memoriam
Louise Watson passed away last week; I attended her memorial service yesterday, and the sanctuary was filled to overflowing; Louise was involved with many throughout the community.
Watson family.
Family.
The promise of new life
In the face of my grand-niece, Sophia Catherine Wiebe, shines all of the promise of new life. She inspires me every day. I look forward to the day when Cindy and I have our own grandchildren.
Attrib: W. Burt Ferguson, Family.
Burt Ferguson Remembered: passions
My father-in-law Burt died recently, and before he died, we, Cindy, Scot and I, had some conversations with him about his passions. Cindy and Scot sat up through the night during Burt's last days, and reminisced about their Dad's many pastimes and loves. Aside from words and reading, Burt had many other passions. When he became interested in a pastime, he became “obsessed” with it. His greatest sporting passions were probably tennis, chess, and bicycling.
Oregon Scribbler.
Burt Ferguson Remembered: words, words, words
My father-in-law Burt died recently, and before he died, Burt and I spent many hours talking about language, history and philosophy, his great passions. Burt spent more time reading than any other of his pastimes. He was a serious reader, meaning both that he read carefully, and that he read very little fiction or humor, but focused on more sober subjects. One of the most powerful and recurring memories that his children have of him is Burt sitting in his den, reading and taking notes. This habit continued into his last days; Burt spent much of his retirement hours in his den engrossed in reading about his favorite subjects.Burt Ferguson Remembered: WWII
My father-in-law Burt died recently, and before he died, we, Cindy, Scot and I, had some conversations with him about his service in the U.S. Navy during World War II.
Taken prior to Operation Anvil, per Burt.. Attrib: W. Burt Ferguson, Family.
Attrib: W. Burt Ferguson, Family.
Burt Ferguson Remembered: early life
My father-in-law Burt died recently, and before he died, we, Cindy, Scot and I, had some conversations with him about his early life. William Burton Ferguson was born on January 12, 1925, in Portland, Oregon. His father and mother, Mel and Stella Wood Ferguson . . .Burt Ferguson: in memoriam
Burt Ferguson died last Thursday morning of heart failure; he was 85 years old. Burt's four children were with him at the end; one from afar, in spirit, even at that moment en route to him, and the rest around his bedside.
Family.
Burt is my father-in-law, my wife Cindy's father. He brought Cindy into this world, and for that alone I am deeply grateful to him.
Oregon Scribbler.
Congratulations to Dr. Jon! Woohoo!
Our son Jonathan Wiebe graduated from the University of Virginia medical school recently, and just started his residency at Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles. Congratulations, Jon!
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